The role of a nurse encompasses actions related to providing care to families, individuals, and communities. Nursing professionals have the duty of providing services that are designed to promote the health of all individuals, prevent the onset of illness, in addition to achieving optimal recovery from a range of health abnormalities (Blais et al. 2015). It becomes extremely imperative for nurses to gain an awareness of the legal aspects associated with nursing, while caring for the patients. This essay will elaborate on confidentiality, which forms the bases of a trustworthy relationship between a nurse and the client.
Legal aspects of nursing have been found to create a major impact on the manner of delivery of healthcare services, by shaping the environment of nursing practice and the manner of keeping or sharing essential documents. Hence, nursing professionals must be aware of the scope and standards of practice that will act as a foundation guide for excellence in nursing practice (Akyüz and Erdemir 2013). Client confidentiality generally encompasses the principle that prevents an individual or institution from revealing necessary information about specific clients to a third party or organisation, without the prior consent of the client. Only in a setting that encompasses trust, can a client share medical history, feelings and information on presenting complaints to enable the nursing professionals for comprehending, diagnosing and administering effective treatment services (Agaku et al. 2013).
Thus, the nursing professionals must abide by the ethical rules that right to privacy of a client is fundamental and personal. The Data Protection Act 1998 was enforced by the United Kingdom Parliament with the aim of protecting personal data that is stored in electronic devices such as, computers or in paper filing system. Thus, all confidential documents are held in accordance to the requirements of the act, to ensure correct handling and confidentiality of all kinds of information that the nurses have access to, in a healthcare setting (Legislation.gov.uk 2018). It is imperative for all nurses to abide by a set of eight principles that govern the care of patients and safeguarding of data. Thus, nurses must ensure that all kinds of personal information for patients are lawfully and fairly processed, for limited purpose, in addition to being adequate, and relevant. Adherence to the act ensures that nurses protect and respect the mental health information for all clients. Evidences have established the fact that most psychiatric patients believed in improvement of their therapeutic relationship, if the conversations are confidential (Wong et al. 2015).
Further principles of the Data Protection Act also govern the fact that all client data are accurate, updated and processed in time, with the data rights of the clients. Furthermore, such confidential data should not be transferred across countries without adequate protection. Furthermore, client confidentiality also makes it necessary for the nursing professionals to provide all clients the right to access the medical records. In other words, nurses should demonstrate respect towards the right of the patients regarding their expectation that their personal information is kept private and safeguarded (Hsieh et al. 2015). The Care Act 2014 also focuses on supply of information that relates to the nursing responsibilities of complying with information requests from the safeguarding adult boards (Legislation.gov.uk 2018).
According to the Code for Nurses and Midwives it is integral in nursing practice to owe a duty of confidentiality to care service users. This makes it mandatory for nurses to respect client’s right to privacy and also share necessary information in the best interest of patient safety (NMC 2015). This has been established by research evidences that have correlated respecting patient confidentiality with gaining a sound understanding of terms, good record keeping and proper information disclosure (Bai et al. 2014). On the other hand, Article 8 of the Human Rights Act protects the rights to respect private and family life. Furthermore, the article also stated that no interference should be made by public authorities with exercise of the right, except in accordance to the law (Liberty Human Rights 2018). Failure to adhere to these rights result in a breach of confidentiality by the nursing professionals, thereby causing a lawsuit. Written disclosure or authorization form must be obtained in instances that require sharing of medical information (Petrik et al. 2015). Although most breaches are not wilful violations of nursing policies and principles, some often involve consulting the legal department, human resources, and nursing administrators for investigating the issue (Tarzian, Wocial and ASBH Clinical Ethics Consultation Affairs Committee 2015). Following a careful consideration of the violation of necessary actions and policies, the concerned nurse might get suspended in most instances, without pay, until the investigation is complete. Upon ending the investigation, all involved parties and stakeholders unanimously decide for actions depending on the breach severity (Van Deursen, Buchanan and Duff 2013). However, minor confidentiality breaches that involve failure to safeguard or handle sensitive patient data might not always result in observable consequences for the nurses. Several studies have shown that poor organisation, inadequate infrastructure accounted for violation of confidentiality rights, while sharing information with client families (Beltran-Aroca et al. 2016).
Although confidentiality has been recognised as a constitutional right, nurses might be under a legal duty to breach client confidentiality in instances that involve notifying a proper statutory authority about the spread of an infectious disease. This is generally referred to as permitted health situations where disclosure of patient information is essential for public safety and health (WHO 2016). Disclosure of patient information in public interest also occurs when there is a risk of serious harm or death to the patient or the entire community (Duncan, Williams and Knowles 2013). Efforts must be taken at such instances to seek patient consent, unless the action would ne prejudicial to the purpose of disclosure. The Mental Capacity Act 2008 can also be applied by nurses when they have to make decisions on behalf of patients lacking the capacity to provide consent for disclosure (Legislation.gov.uk 2018). These nursing professionals are required to make decisions for violating client confidentiality in the best interest and welfare of the patient.
Thus, it can be concluded that the primary role of a nurse is associated with advocating and caring for patients belonging to all religious and ethnic backgrounds, while supporting them through their illness. Furthermore, a nursing professional also has the duty of identifying and protecting the rights of all clients who refuse medication or treatment, in addition to respecting the dignity of each patient. To conclude, nurses hold the ethical responsibility of safeguarding all information, obtained in the context of the nurse-patient relationship.
References
Agaku, I.T., Adisa, A.O., Ayo-Yusuf, O.A. and Connolly, G.N., 2013. Concern about security and privacy, and perceived control over collection and use of health information are related to withholding of health information from healthcare providers. Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association, 21(2), pp.374-378.
Akyüz, E. and Erdemir, F., 2013. Surgical patients’ and nurses’ opinions and expectations about privacy in care. Nursing ethics, 20(6), pp.660-671.
Bai, X., Gopal, R., Nunez, M. and Zhdanov, D., 2014. A decision methodology for managing operational efficiency and information disclosure risk in healthcare processes. Decision Support Systems, 57, pp.406-416.
Beltran-Aroca, C.M., Girela-Lopez, E., Collazo-Chao, E., Montero-Pérez-Barquero, M. and Muñoz-Villanueva, M.C., 2016. Confidentiality breaches in clinical practice: what happens in hospitals?. BMC medical ethics, 17(1), p.52.
Blais, K., Hayes, J.S., Kozier, B. and Erb, G.L., 2015. Professional nursing practice: Concepts and perspectives (p. 530). NJ: Prentice Hall.
Duncan, R.E., Williams, B.J. and Knowles, A., 2013. Adolescents, Risk Behaviour and Confidentiality: When Would Australian Psychologists Breach Confidentiality to Disclose Information to Parents?. Australian Psychologist, 48(6), pp.408-419.
Hsieh, C., Yun, D., Bhatia, A.C., Hsu, J.T. and De Luzuriaga, A.M.R., 2015. Patient perception on the usage of smartphones for medical photography and for reference in dermatology. Dermatologic Surgery, 41(1), pp.149-154.
Legislation.gov.uk., 2018. Care Act 2014. [online] Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2014/23/contents/enacted [Accessed 13 Jun. 2018].
Legislation.gov.uk., 2018. Data Protection Act 1998. [online] Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/29/contents [Accessed 13 Jun. 2018].
Legislation.gov.uk., 2018. Mental Capacity Act 2005. [online] Available at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2005/9/contents [Accessed 13 Jun. 2018].
Liberty Human Rights., 2018. Article 8 Right to a private and family life. [online] Available at: https://www.libertyhumanrights.org.uk/human-rights/what-are-human-rights/human-rights-act/article-8-right-private-and-family-life [Accessed 13 Jun. 2018].
Nursing and Midwifery Council., 2015. The code- professional standards of practice and behaviour for nurses and midwives. [online] London: Available from https://www.nmc.org.uk/globalassets/sitedocuments/nmc-publications/nmc-code.pdf [Accessed on 13 june 2018].
Petrik, M.L., Billera, M., Kaplan, Y., Matarazzo, B. and Wortzel, H., 2015. Balancing patient care and confidentiality: Considerations in obtaining collateral information. Journal of Psychiatric Practice®, 21(3), pp.220-224.
Tarzian, A.J., Wocial, L.D. and ASBH Clinical Ethics Consultation Affairs Committee., 2015. A code of ethics for health care ethics consultants: Journey to the present and implications for the field. The American Journal of Bioethics, 15(5), pp.38-51.
Van Deursen, N., Buchanan, W.J. and Duff, A., 2013. Monitoring information security risks within health care. computers & security, 37, pp.31-45.
Wong, S.T., Lavoie, J.G., Browne, A.J., MacLeod, M.L. and Chongo, M., 2015. Patient confidentiality within the context of group medical visits: is there cause for concern?. Health Expectations, 18(5), pp.727-739.
World Health Organization., 2016. Guidance for managing ethical issues in infectious disease outbreaks. World Health Organization. Retrieved from- https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/250580/1/9789241549837-eng.pdf
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