When investigating patient safety incidents, it is vital that this is done in an open and honest manner, without apportionment of blame. The Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch (HSIB) has operated since 2017 but what should you do if you become part of an investigation? Sarah Pickering, advisory case manager at Medical Protection, finds out

Knowing when you can disclose sensitive patient information is a notoriously complex area. Sarah Pickering, advisory case manager at Medical Protection, considers some recent queries from members regarding disclosures to the Office of the Public Guardian

To mark the Dying Matters national awareness week, between 13 and 19 May, Medical Protection asked nearly 400 members in the UK about their experiences on a number of issues such as DNACPR, organ donation and withdrawal of treatment.

Confidentiality is at the centre of maintaining trust between patients and doctors. But what are your obligations to a patient after they have died?

Patients will not necessarily be in a position to differentiate between you, as a medical student, and a “real” doctor – so it’s up to you to make sure they know who you are.

The NHS has released new guidance to help doctors, nurses and other staff safely use instant messaging during emergencies

Is the patient’s son entitled to access his mother’s confidential information? Where a patient lacks capacity clinicians should consider what action is in the patient’s best interests.

Are we obliged to facilitate a request for CCTV footage of the practice car park? You need to consider the confidentiality of other patients. Dr Rachel Birch, medicolegal consultant, answers a member’s query.

Being approached by the police can pose a dilemma: as a clinician, you have your own professional obligations. Dr Marika Davies, senior medicolegal adviser at Medical Protection, provides some clarity

Dr Hajra Siraj, GP registrar in London, shares a tricky case around assessing the competence of young people.

All doctors know that maintaining confidentiality is an important part of building up trust with patients. Here, Dr Stephanie Bown examines the medicolegal aspects of confidentiality

Good Medical Practice advises doctors that they must be honest and trustworthy when signing forms, reports and other documents. It also requires doctors to make sure that any documents they write or sign are not false or misleading

Around 7% of allegations heard at fitness-to-practise hearings in 2011 were with regards to relationships with patients. As a doctor’s profession is defined by the duty of care to patients, it follows that standards of professionalism are entwined with the strength of the relationship between doctor and patient.

The GMC has revised its Confidentiality guidance for all doctors practising in the UK

The GMC has revised its Confidentiality guidance and this will come into force on 25 April 2017. Medicolegal Adviser Dr Rachel Birch explains what doctors need to know about the changes

A common dilemma on the advice line is requests for medical records by the police or social services. Senior Medicolegal Adviser Dr Pallavi Bradshaw shares her advice

You owe a duty of confidentiality to all your patients, past or present, even if they are adults who lack capacity. You may be asked to provide information from the medical records of patients who are incapable of giving consent, are aged under 18, or have died. This factsheet gives you further information about dealing with these circumstances.

The GMC states that “Whether or not you have vulnerable children or young people as patients, you should consider their needs and welfare and offer them help if you think their rights have been abused or denied.” Surgery consultations, home visits, accident and emergency admissions and contact with other professionals who work with children help to build up a picture of a child’s situation.

Text messaging allows practices to target and contact hundreds of patients within minutes. Patients can respond by text with replies automatically forwarded to a specified email address. Many practices are signing up to using a text messaging service to inform patients of appointments, flu vaccinations, etc.