§ 29. Mr. Barry FieldTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance he issues to hospitals about giving the police the names and addresses of injured suspects. [18413]
§ Mr. HoramAll national health service bodies and staff have a legal duty to protect patient confidentiality and health information given or obtained for one purpose should not usually be used for a different purpose without the express consent or implied authorisation of the provider of the information. This duty of confidence can be overridden, most commonly when considered necessary in the public interest and this may include circumstances where the disclosure is relevant to the prevention or detection of serious crime. Any decision to do so would need to be taken locally after full consideration of the individual details of the case.
582WThis reinforced in guidance issued to the NHS on 7 March, "Protection and Use of Patient Information", copies of which are available in the Library.