Patient Confidentiality

Patient Confidentiality

All healthcare providers must protect patients’ privacy, human dignity, and confidentiality. Furthermore, nurses must maintain patient confidentiality daily because they act as custodians. As a result, healthcare professionals should never release information disclosed by the patient or learned in connection with the treatment. Because patients entrust these professionals with their personal information, they must safeguard it. Because of the nature of the illnesses and information, revealing a patient’s report to the public hurts their life. As a result, healthcare providers who violate patient confidentiality face legal consequences. The code of ethics for nurses specifies all nurses’ ethical obligations and standards, and all participants (nurses) must uphold them. According to Epstein and Turner (2015), the American Nurses Association believes that all nurses are accountable for their actions; thus, they are expected to advocate for and work to protect patients’ safety, health, and rights. Patient confidentiality violations are pretty common in the elderly and obstetrics and gynecology.

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Due to unforeseen circumstances, patient confidentiality may be violated. There are usually constant turnovers of visitors and numerous workers at patients in the emergency departments of several hospitals. The constant movement in and out of such departments disrupts the nurses’ everyday operations. Most importantly, they cause congestion, resulting in limited space, making patient confidentiality challenging to maintain. Furthermore, nurses in these facilities are frequently under intense pressure to release patient reports so that they can be medicated. The patient’s family and friends may be very interested in obtaining such statements to learn the cause of the illness. In this case, the healthcare professional must choose between disclosing the patient’s information and maintaining confidentiality. Beech (2007), on the other hand, emphasizes the importance of every healthcare provider or nurse becoming acquainted with the nurses’ code of conduct. They should also be informed of the legal consequences of breaching such confidentiality.

Nonetheless, interest may precede confidentiality at a time and under certain conditions. No legal actions can be taken against the involved nurses because health departments and governments permit and vividly explain such situations. Courts, health departments, parents/guardians, and insurance companies can all access the information.

Furthermore, when working with older adults, a patient confidentiality dilemma arises. The number of elderly patients has rapidly increased in the twenty-first century, particularly in the United States. Providing medical services to such patients has been difficult because most are cared for from their homes. The nurses may sometimes be required to reveal the information to a family member or guardian. According to Mueller et al. (2004), the dilemma arises when the healthcare provider feels compelled to disclose the information. When nurses find themselves in this situation due to ignoring informed consent and decision-making capacity, they automatically defer to family members. Some health decisions are critical; the nurse cannot make them alone because they will be held accountable for any negative response. Booking an elderly patient for surgery, for example, necessitates the involvement of family or guardians. As a result, the clinician can reveal the information on such occasions.

Furthermore, patient confidentiality cases have grown in number and importance, particularly in obstetrics and gynecology. Because of the nature of the profession, nurses find themselves sharing patient information without their consent, fearing legal ramifications. Woodward and Argent (2005) identify numerous critical areas in clinical practice that legally justify a breach of confidentiality. Patients undergoing pregnancy termination, contraception, sterilization, conception, physical violence injuries, and transmissible illnesses may not enjoy patient confidentiality because the law allows for sharing their information without their consent. This information, however, should only be shared in exceptional circumstances and with authorized individuals. Patient confidentiality, lawsuits, and litigation are all intertwined in the healthcare industry.

Finally, nurses must maintain patient confidentiality daily because they act as custodians. Furthermore, all healthcare providers must protect patients’ privacy, human dignity, and privacy. Depending on the nature of the illnesses and information, disclosing a patient’s information to the public hurts their life. As a result, healthcare providers who violate patient confidentiality face legal consequences. Even though patient confidentiality is essential to every patient, there are several circumstances in which it may be violated. As a result, several ethical and legal issues concerning patient confidentiality have arisen. Patient confidentiality may be jeopardized due to a lack of space in specific departments, such as emergencies, where crowding is common. Nurses in this facility face an ethical quandary regarding protecting patient information. In addition, there is a patient confidentiality issue among older adults, in which others must make decisions. Finally, patient confidentiality cases have grown in number and importance, particularly in obstetrics and gynecology.

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References

Beech, M. (2007). Confidentiality in health care: conflicting legal and ethical issues. Nursing Standard, 21(21), 42-47.

Epstein, B., & Turner, M. (2015). The nursing code of ethics: Its value, its history. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 20(2), 1-10.

Mueller, P. S., Hook, C. C., & Fleming, K. C. (2004, April). Ethical issues in geriatrics: a guide for clinicians. In Mayo Clinic Proceedings (Vol. 79, No. 4, pp. 554-562). Elsevier.

Woodward, Z., & Argent, V. P. (2005). Patient confidentiality. Current Obstetrics & Gynecology, 15(3), 211-214.

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Discussion Question

A nurse colleague uses his cell phone to take a photo of a patient’s wound and then sends a message with the photo to the primary care provider via text. Please consider the following in your discussion post:

• What principles of patient confidentiality might be an issue? Consider legal and ethical.
• How might this nurse use a communication device to support safe patient practices?
• What would your organization’s policy on ‘personal communication device use in a patient care setting’ reveal related to this case? (If your organization does not have a written policy, or you are not currently working in an organization, what do you think should be included in such a policy and why?)