Not necessarily. In most situations you should not disclose medical information without the patient's permission. Both California State & Federal HIPAA laws protect a patient's right of privacy related to their medical care and medical record. Generally, no one, including a spouse should be told a patient's diagnosis and treatment without the patient's permission.
To protect the practice against liability for unauthorized disclosure, consider the following:
- Ask patients to identify individuals with whom the doctor may share medical information.
- If a spouse or other relative routinely accompanies the patient to the exam room, consent to discuss information may be implied. However, it is still wise to ask for permission and to document the patient's consent in the medical record.
- Obtain the patient's written consent and place it in an accessible location in their chart.
- Ask patients scheduled for surgery to identify one person with whom the surgeon has permission to talk immediately following the surgery and if this extends to future conversations.
- Establish a process which identifies for staff what type of information they can and should not give out on the telephone.
Authored by
Ann Whitehead, RN, Esq
CAP Risk Management & Patient Safety Department
If you have questions about this article, please contact us. This information should not be considered legal advice applicable to a specific situation. Legal guidance for individual matters should be obtained from a retained attorney.