Confidentiality: a core feature of general practice.

Abstract

In the medical press in July 2010, Professors Pattison and Marshall ask Is Confidentiality a Con? 1 and repeatedly state that confidentiality of medical information is now ‘a delusion'. The text makes it clear that Professor Pattison is a Professor of Religion, Ethics and Practice and a member of the RCGP Ethics Committee, and that Martin Marshall is Chairman of the Ethics Committee of the RCGP. It includes a disclaimer ‘that this article does not represent the views of the College or of the Ethics Committee but is intended to provoke discussion'. In view of the high importance of the subject, the danger of patients being misled, and the request for discussion, a response is needed. This article makes no reference to the law, which provides the framework for medical practice in the UK and which is the starting point for discussion of confidentiality in the modern world. There are many legal aspects. The Data Protection Act2 which covers England, Scotland, and Wales, requires all those handling personal information to do so ‘fairly and lawfully'. All general practices need to register under this Act, as the data which practices handle fall within the definition of this Act. ‘Lawfully’ includes acting within the Common Law. It is necessary to distinguish corporate and professional confidentiality. The common law duty of confidentiality3 applies in all parts of the UK. This provides protection for patients against disclosure of information given to their doctors and nurses. This position is important to all patients and all practising doctors. Patients have rights and while it is obviously for patients to decide how much to tell the doctor, anything that they do decide to say within a medical …