ICN Position:

 

ICN and its member associations support the necessary safeguards to protect the privacy of patient records, and encourage means to facilitate patient and/or family access to these records.

 

Additionally, ICN supports efforts to establish national or international protocols and standards for portable health records that could be used as guidelines to enhance patient or caregiver information, understanding and participation in their care.

 

ICN believes that persons receiving health care services should be seen as the primary owner of their health information. They have a right to information and equitable sharing of knowledge directly related to their health problems, to the actions proposed or taken by health caregivers, and to the consequences of these actions.

 

Individual nurses and professional nursing associations must be familiar with rights, responsibilities, protocols and legislation in their country, regarding patients’ rights to privacy. Professional nursing associations should assist nurses in understanding and exercising their responsibilities.

 

Professional nursing associations should monitor the introduction of any international guidelines adapted for use in their country, and the impact of changing technology on patients’ rights.

 

 

 

Background:

 

Health and other information systems used in the planning, management and delivery of health and related services pose threats to patients’ rights to privacy because they increase accessibility to personal information. Specific measures must be taken to ensure patients’ right to privacy.

 

Nurses must understand the ethical values and legal implications underlying their own responsibilities in respect of patients’ right to privacy.

 

Where health information systems are technologically advanced, and with the potential impact of information and communication technology on patients, nurses and others must exercise due care to protect the patient’s right to privacy. Where this is covered by the law, and nurses neglect their responsibilities under the law, they may face legal consequences.