3.2 Confidentiality

As you have seen, patients’ health information and their interests must be protected through a number of measures. However, there are some exceptional circumstances when a professional can share information about a patient without their consent. For example:

  • where there is a risk of serious harm to the patient or to others, or a risk of a serious crime being committed. For example, someone could tell their doctor that they were going to try to severely hurt themselves or other people. The doctor could decide to share this information with someone else who is working closely with that person, or contact the police.
  • when a professional has to weigh up the need for confidentiality against ʿpublic interestʾ. This means that, if they feel the information could be helpful to the public as a whole, it can be released in certain circumstances. So, if someone has been diagnosed with a serious contagious disease such as swine flu, a medical professional may disclose this information to the public via the media in order to prevent the spread of this disease. This would only include information that is necessary to inform the public and personal details would not be shared. Likewise, if a court of law demands that confidentiality should be breached healthcare staff have no choice but to obey.

It is always difficult to judge when it is justified to breach a confidence, so healthcare assistants should not decide on their own. It should always be discussed with a line manager or other specified colleague.

What you have learned in this section