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Reflective essay on confidentiality

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Reflective essay on confidentiality
The subject I intend to reflect upon is confidentiality within a professional healthcare setting. Confidentiality formed a part of our professional issues lectures and it piqued my interest due to how differently it is interpreted within healthcare as opposed to education, which is my background. In an educational setting I was taught repeatedly that I could never ensure confidentiality between myself and a child. Comparing that to what I have now learnt in healthcare, this seemed to me almost the opposite way of working as I was used to and so I wish to reflect upon this.
I intend to look at why confidentiality is so important within healthcare and how it relates to the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s (NMC) Code. I will look at the strategies in place to protect the privacy of healthcare users, including the areas where confidentiality is even more important. I will also be looking at the various occasions that arise in which a confidentiality can be breached and who should be informed in these cases and finally I hope to look at a case study where confidentiality was breached and use that information to help guide me to make better choices in the future.
Jasper (2011) tells us that reflection is the ability to see ourselves both physically and metaphorically. She also states that reflection can be looking again at something or in a different way. Somerville and Keeling tell us that reflection is the study of our thoughts, actions and focusing on our interaction and environments with the intention of fully seeing ourselves (Nursing Times, 2004).
Bulman & Schutz (2008) talk of reflection as being a tool to review experience, so that it may be “described, analysed [and] evaluated” then used to influence future practice. Sully & Dallas (2010) state that reflection is essential in the nurse’s development into sound and responsive professionals and they cite Benner (2001) who stated that nursing cannot expand or fully develop without the practice of reflection.


References: Bulman, C. and Schutz, S., 2008. Reflective Practice in Nursing. 4th ed. Oxford: Blackwell. Castledine, G., 2005. Case of the deputy ward manager who broke patient confidentiality, British Journal of Nursing, [e-journal] 14 (19), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Castledine, G., 2010. Limitations of confidentiality, British Journal of Nursing, [e-journal] 19 (2), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Cornock, M., 2009. Confidentiality. Keeping confidence, [e-journal] 23 (44), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Department of Health, 1997. Report on the review of patient-identifiable information. [pdf] London: Department of Health. Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Department of Health, 2003. Confidentiality: NHS Code of Practice. [pdf] London: Department of Health. Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Higginson, R., 2009. Haywood case shows NMC is out of touch, British Journal of Nursing, [e-journal] 18 (9), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Jasper, M. 2011. Vital Notes for Nurses: Professional Development, Reflection and Decision-making [e-book] Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell. Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Johns, C. and Freshwater, D., 2005. Transforming nursing through reflective practice, 2nd ed. [online]. Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Johns, C., 1995. Framing learning through reflection within Carper 's fundamental ways of knowing in nursing. Journal of advanced nursing [e-journal] 22 (2), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Legislation.gov.uk, 1998. Data Protection Act [online] Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Legislation.gov.uk, 1998. Data Protection Act [online] Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Lockwood, G.M., 2005. Confidentiality. Medicine, [e-journal] 33 (2), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Lynch, B., 2006. Sharing information and confidentiality: focused solutions in practice. Community Practitioner, [e-journal] 79 (2), Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Ma, R., 2007. Sexual health: Confidentiality the key to patients ' choice. The Practitioner [e-journal] p.22, Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 25 November 2012]. National Library of Medicine, 2012. Greek Medicine - The Hippocratic Oath [online] Available at: [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Nursing & Midwifery Council (2008) The NMC Code of Professional Conduct: Standards for Conduct, Performance and Ethics, London: Nursing & Midwifery Council. Nursing & Midwifery Council, 2009. Record Keeping: A Guide for Nurses and Midwives. [pdf] London: Nursing & Midwifery Council. Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Nursing & Midwifery Council, 2012. Confidentiality [online] Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Oxford Brookes University, 2011. Reflective Writing: Upgrade Study Advice Service - Oxford Brookes University [online] Available at: [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Staines, R., 2009. NMC defends decision to strike off undercover nurse Margaret Haywood, Nursing Times [online] Available at: [Accessed 25 November 2012]. Sully, P. and Dallas, J., 2010. Essential Communication Skills for Nursing and Midwifery, 2nd ed. [online]. Available through: Anglia Ruskin University Library website [Accessed 24 November 2012]. Thompson, I.E., Melia, K.M. and Boyd, K.M., 2000. Nursing Ethics. 4th ed. London: Churchill Livingston. University of Nottingham, 2012. Driscoll (by Borton) [online] Available at: [Accessed 24 November 2012]. World Medical Association, 2012. WMA Declaration of Geneva [online] Available at: [Accessed 24 November 2012].
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