Medical privacy and its value for patients.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To review privacy issues of medical information and current legal guidelines. DATA SOURCES Government regulations and reports. CONCLUSIONS: Patients must have trust and confidence that the health care system will safeguard their health information and that it will not be used to discriminate against them through insurance or employment. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE Health care professionals must be sensitive to the privacy needs of patients during the collection and storage of data, the access to information, and the sharing of patient information.