[Practical thoughts on the matter of responsibility in phlebology].

If the general concept of responsibility has been widening, so, too, the concept of medical responsibility. The changes in outlook may be good for us in that they oblige us personally to keep a check on our medical actions. But they also gradually restrict our medical rights, and our right to make ethical decisions. The most notable points in these changes include the concept of enlightened consent, important considerations of the comparative pros and cons of all treatment or diagnosis; considerations too of the time spent on these, and examinations of our work-methods, and of the means used in our practice. One of the most notable changes concerns the patient-doctor relationship. Taken to extremes, such changes could have a negative and paralysing effect on medical practice, and be detrimental to the patient.