This document discusses the importance of privacy and confidentiality for patients in pharmacies. It outlines several key points: 1) Laws and guidelines, such as the General Pharmaceutical Council in the UK, require pharmacists and pharmacy staff to protect patient privacy and keep patient information confidential. 2) Confidential patient information includes medical histories, prescriptions, and other personal details. 3) Pharmacies must take steps to safeguard privacy, such as private consultation areas, limiting who can overhear discussions, and securing hard copy and electronic records. 4) Patients have expressed concerns about others overhearing their medical information or prescriptions. Maintaining privacy and confidentiality is important to build patient

1. PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY
IN PHARMACIES:
Tatenda Chikwetu
August 2019

3. Points of Discussion
 Why privacy and confidentiality?
 Laws and regulation regarding patient privacy
and confidentiality
 Safeguarding patient information
 Respecting a person’s privacy and
confidentiality
 Managing a person’s information
 Patient Counselling and privacy

4. Why Privacy and Confidentiality?
 Patient-Provider confidentiality – Sharing of
information is based on trust.
 Relationship between patients and the
pharmacy profession is built on trust.
 Empathy can help you to maintain
confidentiality.
 Protect patient’s dignity.
 Consent.

5. Legislation and Guidelines
 Good Pharmacy Practice Guidelines.
 Constitutional Laws.
 UK - General Pharmaceutical Council – Standards for
Pharmacy professionals.
 UK - Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA) & Human Rights
Act 1998.
 USA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act (HIPAA).
 Canada - Personal Information Protection and Electronic
Documents Act (PIPEDA).
 Australia - Personally Controlled Electronic Health
Records Act 2012 and Privacy Act 1988.

6. Legislation and Guidelines:
Zimbabwe
 HPA, MASCA?
 MCAZ Inspection of new Premises For
Pharmacy?
 Good Pharmacy Practice Guidelines?
 HPA’s Health Institution Registration
Inspection and Renewal Manual – Front
Shop is Optional

7. Confidential information
 Includes:
 electronic and hard copy data;
 personal details;
 information about a person’s medication
(prescribed and non-prescribed);
 other information about a person’s medical
history, treatment or care that could identify them,
and ;
 information that people share that is not strictly
medical in nature, but that the person disclosing it
would expect to be kept confidential.

8. PATIENTS CONCERNS
 “I have not felt comfortable … sometimes you
are asked questions that you'd rather not
everybody knows… it's just not comfortable
especially if you live in a small town. Even if
you're buying Panadol®, you don't want your
neighbour to know – it's none of their business. I
don't think they [the staff] consciously talk too
loud; it's just if there's too many customers…”

9. PATIENTS CONCERNS
 “I feel there should be a room for privacy
purposes”
 “I heard a pharmacist read out a list of another
patient’s medicines and I thought this was bad
because it could have been medicines for
something embarrassing.”

10. Privacy Issues
 “When prescriptions are waiting to be
completed, maybe Mr Smith leans over the
counter and sees a prescription for Mr Jones
next door and finds out he is taking Viagra.”
 Keep prescriptions out of sight of other
customers.
 Similarly, when someone comes to collect a
prescription it’s important to make sure
you’ve got the right Fred Smith.

11. Confidentiality and privacy
 Practitioners have ethical and legal
obligations to protect the privacy of people
requiring and receiving care.
 Patients or clients have a right to expect that
practitioners and their staff will hold
information about them in confidence, unless
release of information is required by law or
public interest considerations.

12. Confidentiality and privacy
 Good practice involves:
 treating information about patients or clients as
confidential;
 seeking consent from patients or clients before
disclosing information where practicable;
 Being aware of the requirements of the privacy
and/or health records legislation;
 Sharing information appropriately about patients
or clients for their health care while remaining
consistent with privacy legislation and
professional guidelines about confidentiality;

13. Good practice involves:
 providing appropriate surroundings to enable
private and confidential consultations and
discussions to take place.
 ensuring that all staff are aware of the need
to respect the confidentiality and privacy of
patients or clients and refrain from discussing
patients or clients in a non-professional
context

14. Confidentiality and privacy
 ensuring that all staff are aware of the need
to respect the confidentiality and privacy of
patients or clients and refrain from discussing
patients or clients in a non-professional
context
 using appropriate consent forms for release
of information which limits disclosure to
relevant health and medical information.

15. Relatives, carers and
partners?
 Who deserves to know and who doesn’t?
 Obtain consent

16. Relatives, carers and
partners?
 Good practice involves:
 a) being considerate to relatives, carers, partners
and others close to the patient or client and
respectful of their role in the care of the patient or
client
 b) with appropriate consent, being responsive in
providing information.

17. Challenges
 Small pharmacies – the counselling area will be
within earshot of other customers.
 Consumers with hearing problems – Pharmacy
staff will have to raise their voice
 Comments by pharmacy assistants – discussing
patient issues even though the patient is not
present;
 Telephone conversations with other clients on
the phone – within earshot of other clients
present in the pharmacy at the time.

18. Enabling Privacy
 The design and layout of the pharmacy
 Ensure computer screens are not visible to
avoid information being accidentally
disclosed.
 Ask people at the outset of a conversation if
they would prefer to discuss something in
private, away from other customers.
 Training of pharmacy staff.
 Code of Conduct for Staff.

21. The design and layout of the
pharmacy
 Private or semi-private consultation areas.
 Clearly identified sections of the dispensary
set off by barriers or partitions.
 Background music to reduce the risk of
others’ overhearing private conversations.
 Waiting area to avoid crowding at the
prescription counter.
 Enclosed consultation office.

22. Discussion
 Way forward?