1. A. The licensee shall:

   1. (1) Maintain professional boundaries, even when the patient initiates crossing the boundaries of the professional relationship;
   2. (2) Respect and maintain professional boundaries and respect the patient's reasonable expectation of professional conduct; and
   3. (3) If the licensee and the patient mutually desire a personal relationship, immediately terminate the professional relationship, make an appropriate referral to another health care practitioner, and wait before engaging in such a relationship for a time when it is reasonably certain that the professional relationship has no influence on the personal relationship.

2. B. The licensee may not:

   1. (1) Exploit a relationship with a patient for the licensee's personal advantage, including, but not limited to, a personal, sexual, romantic, or financial relationship;
   2. (2) Engage in a sexually intimate act with a patient; or
   3. (3) Engage in sexual misconduct which includes behavior in which a licensee has engaged in sexual behavior with a patient in the context of a professional evaluation, treatment, procedure, or other service to the patient, regardless of the setting in which the professional service is provided.

Authority: Health Occupations Article, §§1A-205 and 1A-206, Annotated Code of Maryland

Effective date: October 18, 1999 (26:21 Md. R. 1630)

Regulation .03C amended effective October 1, 2001 (28:19 Md. R. 1685); February 16, 2026 (53:3 Md. R. 122)

Regulation .06G, H adopted effective April 11, 2005 (32:7 Md. R. 681); February 16, 2026 (53:3 Md. R. 122)