title: CME workshop in recognizing boundary limits during a medical visit.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Professional boundaries help to establish and maintain the foundation of the doctor-patient relationship. Our objective was to measure physicians' level of awareness in recognizing a boundary limit, their intention to change their behavior regarding boundaries, and their self-reported changes in behavior after participation in an educational workshop, "The Right Distance."
  
  
  METHODS
  This longitudinal study used questionnaires to measure the level of awareness of the participants in recognizing boundary limits before and after the workshop and to measure their intention to change their behavior and self-reported behavior changes immediately after the workshop and 6 months later.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Before the workshop, the level of awareness in recognizing the boundary limits was 3.9 on a 5.0 point scale in which 5.0 represented the highest level of awareness, and immediately after the workshop it was 4.2/5.0. Female physicians were more aware of these issues. Following the workshop, 51% of participants indicated an intention to change their behavior. On the 6-month follow-up questionnaire, 138 physicians (60%) answered that they had not changed their behavior, and 92 physicians (40%) answered that they had modified their behavior by changing their attitude toward their personal and professional life and toward gifts and gratuities. When the post-workshop and the 6-month follow-up questionnaires were matched, 34 of 57 (60%) participants who stated their intention to change did in fact change their behavior regarding the "right distance."
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Boundary issues and level of awareness can be effectively taught in a continuing medical education workshop.
authors.affiliation: Practice Enhancement Division, Collége des Médecins du Québec, Montréal, Québec, Canada H3H 2T8. goulet.cmq@sympatico.ca
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Goulet
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jacques
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gagnon
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boulé
authors.forename: Gilles
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Girard
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frenette
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001364:Awareness; D002983:Clinical Competence; D004502:Education, Medical, Continuing; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D033182:Intention; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009819:Office Visits; D010550:Personal Space; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D015397:Program Evaluation