A rural physician who is faced with treating patients outside of his area of specialization should confer with the necessary specialists and make every effort to help patients get the specific care that they need.
Physicians can ethically withhold information in situations where full disclosure of a diagnosis or treatment would cause great psychological harm to the patient.
When serving an ethnically diverse population, it is imperative that physicians have an understanding of a patients' cultural background and attitudes towards health, nutrition and personal care.