Medical Secrecy Importance Analysis

Background

In the emerging modern world, information is the most important component of the development of society. The current civil society is gradually transforming from informed to informational, so we can safely state that the 20th century is rightfully considered the century of information, in which it acquires a global character. Information is significant both for oneself personally and for the state and society as a whole. Everyone can seek, receive, transmit, produce and distribute information in any legal way. The information society is developing at a rapid pace, and this development affects the nature of social relations that are formed between people.

The ethical principles of confidentiality

The principle of confidentiality is a condition for protecting the social status of the patient. Nowadays, people live in a world, in which quite often a medical diagnosis or other medical information can become a stigma for a person, which will significantly limit the possibilities of his social self-affirmation. As such, information about the presence of a mental illness, HIV infection, a malignant disease, a genetic defect, homosexual orientation, a sexually transmitted disease, and a sexual disorder often acts as such. Having become public, such information often causes the unconscious reaction noted above in those around, which is expressed in the social isolation of the stigmatized patient. As a result, a kind of social vacuum is formed around the patient. For each person, it is important that social place, ĸᴏᴛᴏᴩᴏᴇ he occupies among people, his social status. Violation of the rule of confidentiality poses a direct threat to this human value. It should also be emphasized that this value has an independent meaning – it does not depend, say, on the presence or absence of financial damage. If, for example, colleagues force an HIV-positive woman, a district doctor, to leave her job, and she gets a job as a cleaner in the subway, then her salary may increase and be much more stable than in the same place. But it is unlikely that the financial benefits will be able to compensate for the damage done to her social status and her self-esteem, self-esteem. The confidentiality rule also protects the economic interests of patients. In a certain sense, this factor is a consequence of what was described above. The knowledge that a person has cancer, even in a form in which a practical recovery is possible, can severely limit the opportunities for promotion or elected office. Disclosing the fact that a psychiatrist or lawyer is HIV-positive can drastically reduce the number of their clients and thus cause significant financial damage, although in reality their carriage of the virus does not pose any serious threat to clients.

Trust

Confidentiality of relations between professionals and clients is necessary to ensure the reliability of their communication. The patient, exposing both physically and mentally to the doctor, must be convinced that this will not lead to undesirable consequences. Only the confidence of patients in strict observance of confidentiality ensures frankness, without which the normal professional activity of medical workers is impossible. It should not be forgotten that success for a professional matters not only in terms of his financial reward, but also in terms of his personal self-realization. Therefore, by protecting confidentiality, the physician protects the interests not only of patients, but also of his or her own interests as an individual. Maintaining a productive relationship and trust with the patient is one of the main reasons physicians follow the privacy ethic.

Influence on person life

Medical secrecy protects the private life of the patient, his or her social status and economic interests. It is of paramount importance in mental, malignant, venereal and other diseases. Confidentiality of medical information protects the patient’s right to autonomy, the right to be in charge of one’s own life. Maintaining medical secrecy promotes truthfulness and frankness in the relationship between the doctor and the patient, protects the image of the doctor him or herself and strengthens the patient’s trust in medical professionals. On the one hand, confidentiality is a rule of conduct for a doctor. On the other hand, the doctor must be well aware of situations where the preservation of medical secrecy is not good for the patient or poses a threat to others.

Cybersecurity: Practical Influences

Professional ethics regarding the confidentiality of patient information have long been embedded in the rules of most institutions. However, one of the most urgent problems that today have to be solved in a medical institution when using computers is the protection of confidential information (Li et al. 2019). In this regard, it seems appropriate to consider the main aspects of the organization of automated processing of patients’ personal data. When defining the tasks and functions of the confidential records management unit, it is necessary to proceed from the fact that it must not only organize and carry out documentation support for the confidential management and production activities of the enterprise, but also participate in all activities to prevent the loss of confidential documents and the leakage of information contained in them. This participation is not limited to the development and implementation of relevant activities only within the framework of the confidential records management unit. The loss and leakage of confidential information in most cases occur due to the fault of the performers and users of confidential documents, who violate the rules for handling such documents for various reasons. Therefore, a significant part of the functions of the confidential records management unit is related to the training of performers and users in the rules for working with confidential documents and monitoring their implementation. Additionally, this determines the relevant rights of the confidential records management unit, including such as participation in the selection of personnel for working with confidential information, making proposals for removal from confidential work, encouraging and holding accountable performers and users of confidential documents, participating in investigations into the facts loss and leakage of confidential information.

Personal reflection

Through this study, I realized the importance of confidentiality of patient information. Loss of information can affect many areas of a patient’s life and me as a professional. In this regard, I have studied for myself the main aspects of information security in the modern world and I plan to apply them in practice. Patients trust the doctor with their life and health. To justify this trust, I must be aware of the responsibility I take on for the lives of others. I am required to comply with the norms of professional ethics, and my activities must comply with the requirements regarding my competence and responsibility. Information about patients that doctors have is private information and constitutes a medical secret. Such information may be provided to third parties only with the consent of the patient, or in cases provided for by law.

Reference

Li, X., Peng, J., Obaidat, M. S., Wu, F., Khan, M. K., & Chen, C. (2019). A secure three-factor user authentication protocol with forward secrecy for wireless medical sensor network systems. IEEE Systems Journal, 14(1), 39-50. Web.