Each patient is obliged to know his rights for sharing information and receiving proper treatment. The governments follow the rules, which are for confidentiality, informed consent and privacy, in order to share the responsibility for people`s data. These policies are discussed in this paper, and the reasons of their compliance are presented there.
Definition of Informed Consent
Informed consent is one of the most important parts of patient-doctor relationships, when the process of treatment occurs. Each procedure is sure to happen, but the medicine used can bring risks or benefits to the patient`s health. Every person is able to receive the consent or to reject it and stay uninformed, taking responsibility for their health on their shoulders. Confidentiality, in contract to the ability to make choices in informed consent, assures the acknowledgment of the patient`s rights. According to Smith-Tyler, confidentiality is necessary to be followed during studies related to the medical records of a patient and during researches, which are to identify specific information (Smith-Tyler, 2007). Patients` data has to be saved properly, so no one has the right to share it “just because”.
Confidentiality
There are some conditions, when one is able to bring changes to confidentiality. Passing information from one person to anther is forbidden, although there can be some exceptions done in order to provide the patient with better level of treatment or to watch him and his state of health.
Limits of Confidentiality
When confidentiality is discussed, one cannot avoid mentioning the limits of it. It exists for giving correct information to certain people, who are engaged in the process of patient`s treatment. The limits of confidentiality can be established by the client himself, or by people, who are responsible for his treatment and are related to his care. The limits may be expressed according to the patient`s wishes or to the references, which are for observing patient for all the time of his curing.
Topics to be Discussed in the First Session
The discussion of informed consent and confidentiality as the manifestations of privacy cannot be avoided when public meetings are held, as these policies provide proper treatment for patients and gives the confidence in data to be stored well, with high level of security by authorities, who keep all the information about the health state of every patient. Counselors should mention the issues of data privacy and the technical threat from those, who want to steal patient`s information, in their sessions (performances).
Importance of Confidentiality in the Counseling Process
In order to prevent problems with confidentiality and informed consent everyone should care about the hospital staffs` awareness in possible danger of different information to be stolen. With the high variety of technology development, one should take a lot of care to the issues of his personal health data to stay private and protected. Confidentiality is important in the counseling process because of some reasons. Firstly, confidentiality has to be followed in order to regularize all the other aspects of patients` treatment. The counselors have to watch the behaviors and actions of those, who try to manage data confidentiality.
One is able to examine his thinking and prepare good responses to the issues of health information store, as it assures well-established system of health-caring, where every patient is treated correctly, and the representatives of the medical staff are aware of the confidentiality rules. The revelation of people`s information is forbidden because of the risk to harm the counseling relationship. The trust between the patient and the counselor should be like the path, going down which one can mar his life and status in society.
Relationship of Informed Consent and Confidentiality
The informed consent and confidentiality are tied with strong relationship, as one cannot be informed about different matters more, than it is allowed by rules of confidentiality. Every person (patient or client) is able to accept or reject the proposal to know more about personal data and health state. It is up to every of us, but the issue of following confidentiality cannot be at choice – everyone should obey the rules of compliance of confidence towards data privacy.
Confidentiality and Informed Consent are not Followed
Nonobservance of informed consent and confidentiality can lead to serious implications. It can be the risk to relapse after treatment, when patients neglect medical recommendations about how to observe his health state and return to their ordinary way of life after surgery or surviving after some diseases. Moreover, some people are in panic, when they do not understand the reasons for their illnesses. They forget the fact that they can ask for help from counselors – they neglect their right to be informed about their data. Some people are even prone to commit suicide or self-harm. Instead of it, awareness of the informed consent is important in managing the issues of taking care and obeying laws or rules towards clients.
The rising confidentiality in clients` minds can be because of the written records of their conversations, when the issues of privacy are discussed and both sides agree to follow the covenants. Confidentiality in counseling cannot be ignored, as those, who watch both sides of the agreement, become responsible for the actions they take and the rules or laws they comply. Nonobservance of privacy is strictly punished by authorities and can lead to policy intervention. The reputation of every company or institution exists due to the compliance of all the rules. Law-abiding authorities are more likely to be in great demand from society.
The Clients Understand the Policies
If clients understand the policies of confidentiality and informed consent, they are prone to be helped faster, as their knowledge in different issues ensures pure intellect and correct perception of the order of treatment. Whether one uses his right to get some information about his health state, he is well-informed about what to do and how to act in case of noncompliance of rules from the counselors` side. The processes to clarify the understanding of the policies are the trainings and conversations, where one is able to share his knowledge with other people and assimilate rules of correct behavior towards counselors and compliance of confidentiality and informed consent.
Conclusion
This way, one is able to decide up to himself, whether he wants to get the knowledge about his rights and health state or not. It is personal choice, to share data or keep it safe from the outside. Confidentiality is the issue of policy for those, who are worried about their personal data and want to have the private access to it. This means that there are few people, who can be trusted enough to dispose the knowledge, but they are stated because of the client`s wish, not by the decision of a counselor. Informed consent is a matter of high importance, as ignorance leads to bad implications – risks towards life or relapses of illnesses. The confidentiality and informed consent have complicated relationship, as without awareness about state of data one cannot influence it, but the issues of confidentiality have to be followed in order to ensure clients with trust for actions and rules. Every counselor is obliged to inform his clients about the possible ways to improve health state or to store data safely, but he has to propose the choice of using or ignoring this knowledge.
References
Smith-Tyler, J. (2007). Informed Consent, Confidentiality, and Subject Rights in Clinical Trials. Proceedings of the American Thoracic Society, Vol. 4, No. 2, pp. 189-193.
