Client confidentiality: Perspectives of students in a healthcare training programme
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Date
2016
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Health & Medical Publishing Group
Abstract
BACKGROUND. Confidentiality is an important ethical principle for all health professionals and also has a legal bearing on duty. One of the most
difficult issues health professionals face in their daily fieldwork practice is a conflict between their professional duties, as illustrated in keeping
a patient’s medical information confidential, and having empathy with a family member’s need to know. This moral dilemma is difficult for
students to circumvent and therefore this paper presents healthcare students’ perspectives of confidentiality.
METHODS. We aimed to explore healthcare students’ views and experiences of confidentiality as an ethical principle by adopting a qualitative
explorative approach. Purposeful sampling was undertaken
where specific individuals with specific experiences were identified. Data were
collected by means of written responses from two open-ended questions and analysed thematically. Two themes emerged.
CONCLUSION. Confidentiality, as with other ethical principles, is an important obligation of a good client-therapist relationship as identified by
students. However, the students’ responses illustrate that it cannot be absolute, and cognisance must be taken as to when it is acceptable, and
even desirable, to override confidentiality because of conflicting, greater duties.
Description
Keywords
Client confidentiality, Ethical principle, Health professionals, Medical information
Citation
Nortje, N. & de Jongh, J. (2016). Client confidentiality: Perspectives of students in a healthcare training programme. South African Journal of Bioethics and Law, 8(1): 31-34.