Good Medical Practice (2006)
Good clinical care – paragraphs 2-3
Providing good clinical care
2. Good clinical care must include:
- adequately assessing the patient's conditions, taking account of the history (including the symptoms, and psychological and social factors), the patient's views, and where necessary examining the patient
- providing or arranging advice, investigations or treatment where necessary
- referring a patient to another practitioner, when this is in the patient's best interests
3. In providing care you must:
- recognise and work within the limits of your competence
- prescribe drugs or treatment, including repeat prescriptions, only when you have adequate knowledge of the patient's health, and are satisfied that the drugs or treatment serve the patient's needs
- provide effective treatments based on the best available evidence
- take steps to alleviate pain and distress whether or not a cure may be possible
- respect the patient's right to seek a second opinion;
- keep clear, accurate and legible records, reporting the relevant clinical findings, the decisions made, the information given to patients, and any drugs prescribed or other investigation or treatment
- make records at the same time as the events you are recording or as soon as possible afterwards
- be readily accessible when you are on duty;
- consult and take advice from colleagues, where appropriate;
- make good use of the resources available to you.
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