ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the behaviour – the 'B' of BARD–that might be used to portray the chosen role. The behaviour should be seen as the set of physical movements that a family doctor performs or the set of postures that she adopts while engaged in her professional work. An additional advantage of a family doctor understanding non-verbal communication (NVC) is that, with training, different pieces of NVC can be emphasised or suppressed in order to improve communication with a patient. Leg positions do not contribute much to NVC, not because they are not important, but because interpretation of leg movements and positions is difficult. Family doctors trust their patients to tell the truth about their symptoms, to let them know if illness is likely, not to waste time, and to take some responsibility for and co-operate with treatment. A family doctor can use emotion memory to create fresh elements of behaviour for her professional use.
