Confidentiality In Health Care

Confidentiality: Acknowledgement of the process of keeping trusted information private by the clinician, while distinguishing the reason for breaking one’s promise in keeping information secret; through written and verbal communication.

To begin the understanding of confidentiality, the author first provided readers with a formal concept analysis on confidentiality. He explained how confidentiality did not truly become a concept of interested until 1961, when the general nursing guides made a small mention related to the concept in regards to privileged

Confidentiality in the Healthcare arena can be simply defined as the moral and ethical duty of the Practitioner to keep all the patient’s bio-data under lock and key, and offer a disclosure of those facts that the patient is legally mandated to disclose or deems fit to enhance their positive health outcome. According to the Segen’s Medical Dictionary, “Confidentiality is the ethical principle that a physician may not reveal any information disclosed in the course of medical care, unless the patient who disclosed that information poses a threat to him, herself or others’’

The elements of the principles of confidentiality can be broken down into four separate categories: (1) Information provided by the patient is kept confidential unless consent from the patient has otherwise been given—unless it has direct legal implications or endangers the general public. (2) Informed Consent: is given freely, because the correct information has been supplied and the patient has sufficient information on the impacts involved. Information is otherwise given out on a need to know basis. (3) Duty of Care: Information is given out in order to protect the safety and health of others and the patient. Legal and general public health fall under this category. (4) Documenting Decisions: Consultations and actions that lead to

Care providers strive to provide care that is patient focused that maintains confidentiality and respect. This paper is about the maintenance of patient confidentiality and the trusting relationships that must be maintained between the patient and the healthcare providers.

Confidentiality is considered a core value or principal in the medical practice. Confidentiality is a right that all people have within the medical field. This is the requirement of health care providers to keep a person’s information exclusive unless the patient or the person consents in the form of a release to share that information with other people that practice. Usually the consent is given when a doctor wants to consult with a different doctor for example. In this case it would be for the betterment of the person.

In the medical field or any other professions, privacy is paramount. One of the most important things is confidentiality. In this case, patients should be able to trust that they treating physicians will not disclose their personal information to other parties without their consent. The question then becomes: Under what circumstances is it alright for physicians to disclose private medical information to third party without informed consent? Did Dr. Shapiro have the right to disclose Mr. Lovington’s private medical information to his wife Anna, who is also his patient?

As a professional health care worker, the implication confidentiality breach regarding ethical dilemmas are significant to nurse and patient. The information disclosed can cause problems on a personal and professional level. Breach of confidentiality occurs when the heath care work discloses the patient 's medical or personal information without the patient 's informed written or verbal consent. Confidentiality is needed between the nurse and the patient to maintain a good open and honest relationship between both parties. There are several ethical implications regarding breach of confidentiality, for example,

Disclosure for direct patient care emphasizes the importance of limiting the exposure of health care information of a patient to only the one offering treatment. Although physicians are not required to receive their patient’s authorization, others healthcare workers, such as billers, coders, and front desk staff, are not allow to gain access to patient’s health information. In my opinion, this disclosure is essential to those whose careers are in the medical field. My mother is a registered nurse at the same hospital I was admitted to multiple of times for several unexpected emergencies. Although her coworkers shown concern, my personal information, lab results, and the treatments are confidential and only my mother and my physician are allow to see this private information. Several of years later, when I moved from New Jersey to Maryland, I felt comfortable having control of my health information by being asked to call my old physician to fax my health records to my new general physician. After calling, they also required my new physician to send a fax to them with my signature ensuring that my information is secured and only the new physician who is responsible for my care receives and reviews it. A

When it comes to health care, one of patients’ primary concerns is the protection of their private information. It is for this reason that Congress created the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). HIPAA affects nearly all communication between patients, providers, payers, and intermediates such as pharmacies (Fremgen, 2012). Physicians may need to refer a patient to another practice for tests or further treatment. At any time, a patient has the right to request copies of his or her medical records. To collect payment for services, a clinic may need to provide an insurance company with the patient’s diagnosis. Staff must also cooperate when circumstances unrelated to patient care require the release of confidential information. It is critical that staff avoids confusion and properly implements the privacy policy. Medical personnel must exercise caution when communicating patient information, be familiar with special circumstances, and not misinterpret the privacy laws to the detriment of patients and other involved parties.

Health care professionals are subject to a multitude of professional, legal, and ethical responsibilities which call for personal judgment to be utilized in such a manner as to protect clients as well as public wellness and interests. Overall considerations in handling such duties may be considered to be respect of a client’s autonomy, confidence, and recognition of obligations owed to all clients. While the aforementioned acts fall within the professional realm, there are also legal implications that guide care. Therefore, it can be said that ethical considerations occur in observation of legal responsibilities. Confidential information is perceived as private facts which are disclosed with the

But when those involved in these legitimate activities make demands that seem inappropriate, the records must be protected. Disclosure of personal medical information should also be subject to patients’ or families’ consent (Richmond et al. 2009).

The main focus of the article is to look at the absolute value of patients’ confidentiality. Blightman et al. look at the pros and cones of breaking patient’s confidentiality and conclude that a breached of confidentiality is in order when it is necessary to obtain consent, as required by law, or when it is in the best interest of the public. The article is useful to my subject, since it examines in details the main issues involving the safeguard of patients’ information. In addition, the authors define confidential information, looks at breaching confidentiality for consent, audits, protection of children, disclosure to family and friends, statutory disclosure, prevention of crime, public interest, public safety, public health, and disclosure to the media. The paper publication is Continuing Education in Anaesthesia, Critical Care & Pain, which s a joint publication of the British Journal of Anaesthesia and The Royal College of Anaesthetists in the UK. It is also the official journal of The Faculty of Pain Medicine and The College of Anaesthetists of Ireland. Publication in such an esteemed journal requires utterly scrutinized of reliability and credibility of the information provided. I found the article educational and thorough in its coverage of aspects of breach of patient information. It is also well written and easy to understand.

Confidentiality and privacy are hallmarks of health care in Ontario. A person’s health information belongs to that person and they have a right to consent to the use, collection and disclosure of that information, with limited exceptions. They also have the right to access their personal health information. Most people are very concerned about their privacy, especially when it comes to matters of their health. Moreover, privacy and confidentiality are cornerstones of establishing trust in the therapeutic relationship between the practitioner and the patient/client. This includes keeping any other personal information about a patient/client confidential. A patient/client who can trust that his/her personal health information is being protected is more likely to provide a complete health history, which would enable more effective treatment (CKO, 2013).

The confidentiality of patient visits and medical records are essential in providing the highest quality of health care. Under penalty of law, a patient's medical records or any other information regarding the patient may only be released with his or her authorization. Exceptions to this are certain cases specified by law for example, health care providers are required to report certain communicable diseases such as measles. Many organizations and laws have been developed to maintain patient's rights of confidentiality and access to their medical record. Guided by the principle that confidentiality is essential in developing strong trust between patients and healthcare providers, the