AlphaMED Resources · https://alphamedicine.uk/Resources/confidentiality

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is a doctor's duty to keep what a patient tells them private.

Updated 12 October 2026 (1 minute read)

Summary

  • Patients are only honest with their doctors if they trust that the information stays private.
  • The duty continues after the patient has died.
  • It has limits. A doctor may share information when the patient consents, when the law requires it, or when keeping it secret would put someone at serious risk of harm.
  • Legal requirements include reporting certain infectious diseases and obeying a court order.

Interview questions

  • Why is confidentiality so important in medicine?
  • When is a doctor allowed to break confidentiality?
  • A patient with epilepsy tells you he is still driving. What do you do?

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Cases that turn on it

Synnovis NHS cyber attack Autonomy In June 2024 criminals locked the computer systems of the lab that runs blood tests for two of London's biggest hospital trusts. More than 10,000 appointments were postponed, and a long wait for a blood test result contributed to one patient's death.

More NHS hot topics, medical ethics case studies and medical school interview questions are in AlphaMED Resources, which we add to and update through the application cycle.