eng Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Public Health Research 2327-6703 2014-05-07 2 3 99 102 10.12691/ajphr-2-3-6 AJPHR2014236 article E. B. Anyanwu ebirian@yahoo.com 1 Harrison O. Abedi 2 Efe A. Onohwakpor 2 Department of Family Medicine, Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara, P.M.B. 07, Oghara, Nigeria Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Delta State University Teaching Hospital, Oghara, P.M.B. 07, Oghara, Nigeria A trained health care provider principally offers care to ill-patients, offers advocacy to groups of persons, could be a passionate counsellor when needed, and may offer preventive services to individuals and communities at large. He is trained to alleviate the problem of sickness from patients. Therefore, a patient may just as well be the physician himself or may be his immediate family members who can fall ill and so needs the expertise of a doctor. The patient maybe a colleague, friend or employee who all maybe intimate with the physician but may need his services when they are ill. The challenge therefore, is when does the doctor stop doctoring a patient and transfer care to another doctor. What risks may show up if a doctor treats himself and close family members? Is it ethical for a doctor not to offer treatment solely on the ground that the patient is a close relation? http://pubs.sciepub.com/ajphr/2/3/6/ajphr-2-3-6.pdf patient physician treatment family doctor ethics