Good care

Good practice means the practitioner: (a) keeps enough knowledge and skill for safe, effective care (the Board's CPD and recency of practice registration standards apply); (b) has sufficient training or qualifications to be competent before taking up a field of practice that is new to them; (c) keeps adequate records (section 8.3); (d) weighs likely benefit against harm in every clinical management decision; (e) communicates so patients have enough information to decide about their care, and respects a decision to have no treatment; (f) offers options grounded in the best information available and not swayed by financial gain or incentives; (g) practises in an evidence-based, patient-centred framework; (h) acts to relieve symptoms and distress whether or not cure is possible; (i) supports a patient's right to a second opinion; (j) responds to adverse events using open disclosure (section 4.5); (k) consults colleagues when appropriate; (l) uses available resources responsibly (section 6.1); (m) keeps personal views from adversely affecting care; (n) reflects on practice, decisions and actions in giving good, culturally safe care; and (o) supports quality use of therapeutic products on the evidence and the patient's needs.

• CPD record and recency-of-practice hours meeting the Board's registration standards
• Training certificates or qualifications obtained before starting a new service line or technique
• Treatment option notes recording benefits, harms and alternatives discussed, including the no-treatment option
• Reflective practice log or peer review entries

• New procedures introduced without documented training
• Options offered track the most profitable service rather than the evidence
• No record that a patient declining treatment had the risks explained