Communication and duty of care

Duty of care is a professional's responsibility to take reasonable care and ensure no harm is done to patients and clients. Practitioners have ethical and legal obligations to adhere to a reasonable standard of care for people who come for services or interventions. One of the most fundamental ethical principles is 'first, do no harm' (Kerridge et al., 2005). Failure to adhere to a reasonable standard of care may result in an adverse event leading to a complaint or a negligence case. It has been claimed that communication is the main factor determining whether an event will result in a complaint or court case (Tito Report, 1995).