Which term refers to intentional bodily harm or contact without consent?

Which term refers to intentional bodily harm or contact without consent?

• A. Battery
• B. Assault
• C. Deceit or misrepresentation
• D. Breach of confidentiality

Answer: (A)

Battery is the intentional touching of another person in a harmful or offensive way without that person’s consent. In dental practice, consent is required for procedures, so performing a treatment or making contact without permission constitutes battery. This focuses on the actual contact, not just the threat of contact. By comparison, assault concerns causing fear or the imminent threat of harmful contact, not the contact itself, while deceit or misrepresentation relates to fraud and breach of confidentiality to patient privacy. So the description given—intentional bodily harm or contact without consent—fits battery best.

Battery is the intentional touching of another person in a harmful or offensive way without that person’s consent. In dental practice, consent is required for procedures, so performing a treatment or making contact without permission constitutes battery. This focuses on the actual contact, not just the threat of contact. By comparison, assault concerns causing fear or the imminent threat of harmful contact, not the contact itself, while deceit or misrepresentation relates to fraud and breach of confidentiality to patient privacy. So the description given—intentional bodily harm or contact without consent—fits battery best.