Everyone needs love, companionship, and intimacy. Unfortunately, mental illness often results in interpersonal dysfunction, thereby frustrating these desires. Patients might exhibit sexually inappropriate behavior (SIB), consisting of comments, requests, or actions. The causes of SIB include confusion, predation, loneliness, psychosis, social impairment, character pathology, and/or mania.
Such attention poses an issue for mental health providers; trainees could be particularly vulnerable. The impact can be disheartening and cause practitioners to withdraw from patients or question their work, which could be detrimental to both providers and patients. While maintaining their personal safety, it is important that clinicians approach patients with compassion. To help clinicians manage SIB, we propose setting LIMITS.
Look after personal safety. Clinicians are trained to care for all patients, but situations can arise where it is no longer safe to work with an individual. A clinician who feels threatened is less likely to help the patient, especially if real danger is posed. Such situations could necessitate transferring the patient’s care to another provider. Clinicians also can choose to interact with a patient exhibiting SIB while colleagues are present.
Identify the etiology. SIB arises from a variety of underlying states, and the clinician’s response can vary depending on the cause. Questions to consider before reacting include:
- What is the origin of the behavior?
- What form is the behavior taking?
- In what context is it occurring?
- How frequent is it occurring?
- What factors are contributing?
- What are the risks to all parties?1
Maintain a professional role. Although SIB can undermine the provider–patient relationship, the behavior could be unintended. To remain professional, practitioners should pause before reacting and consider how to respond. A particular concern is countertransference, meaning that the provider might react to a patient’s behavior based on personal bias. This could result in amorous, hateful, or angry responses from the provider, which could put the treatment relationship at risk, harm the patient, or result in medical–legal repercussions.
Implement appropriate boundaries. In many cases, it is important to address the SIB. Practitioners should attempt to identify the inappropriate behavior and communicate boundaries with the patient. Clinicians can use statements such as, “I feel uncomfortable with this behavior and would appreciate it if it could be left out of our interactions from now on.” Additional discussion about the motivation behind the SIB may be warranted.
Talk with a Supervisor. These scenarios often produce many emotions. Residents could be experiencing them for the first time, but even seasoned clinicians can find them challenging. When in doubt, seek guidance from colleagues, supervisors, or mentors to help you clarify the situation.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Kristina Zdanys, MD, David Schmidt, DO, Joanna Chaurette, MD, PhD, and Shilpa Lad, MD, for their input.