Confidentiality

Confidentiality preserves individual dignity, prevents information misuse, and protects autonomous decision making by the patient. 6 Key points Take care with personal data: do not disclose details in a public place and do not allow letters, notes, or electronic data to be accessed by others unnecessarily Ask yourself whether disclosure is really necessary Always try to obtain consent to share patient data and if not possible discuss with a senior colleague Contact your indemnity union for advice in tricky situations Keep notes as this shows that you have thought about the problem and provides documentary evidence If contacting a patient by phone, use their personal number and make sure you are talking to the patient Any patient objections to clinical audit must be taken into account; express consent is needed when audits are carried out externally if the data cannot be anonymised What are the challenges? [...]confidentiality exists to protect privileged information shared between you and your patient, not between you and a third party.