General Osteopathic Council

Osteopathic
Practice
Standards

Osteopathic Practice Standards > D. Professionalism > D9. You must support colleagues and cooperate with them to enhance patient care.

D9. You must support colleagues and cooperate with them to enhance patient care.

  1. Where the care of patients is shared between professionals, you should consider the effectiveness of your handover procedures. Effective handovers can be done verbally, but it is good practice to make a note of the handover in the patient’s osteopathic records.
  2. You are responsible for all the staff you employ in your clinic (including administrative staff) and for their conduct, and any guidance or advice they give to patients. You should make sure that staff understand the importance of:
    1. patient confidentiality
    2. secure storage and retention of medical records
    3. appropriate relationships with patients, colleagues and other healthcare professionals
    4. complaints and associated procedures for handling them
    5. maintaining a safe work environment
    6. health and safety
    7. equality duties and good practice.
  3. If you are responsible for an associate or assistant, you should provide professional support and adequate resources for them so that they are able to offer appropriate care to their patients. You should not put them under undue pressure, or expect them to work excessive hours. You should not expect them to provide treatment beyond their competence.
  4. If your practice employs support staff, you should ensure that they are managed effectively and are aware of any legal obligations necessary to fulfil their role.