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56 - Use and disclosure of medical data – guidance on the Application of the Data Protection Act, 1998, May 2002

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 January 2010

Sue Eckstein
Affiliation:
King's College London
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Summary

Information Commissioner's Foreword

The Data Protection Act 1998 presents a number of significant challenges to data controllers in the health sector. Over the course of the last year, I have seen a significant increase in the number of requests for assistance from individuals. At the same time I have been asked to consider issues arising out the Department of Health electronic patient records project, issues in relation to cancer and other disease registries, and issues in relation to the use of patient data in research. Frequently these requests for advice have significant implications for the NHS as a whole and the Department of Health as well as for patients.

It seems to me that there are several reasons for the increase in requests for assistance and advice. Firstly there has been an extension of the scope of Data Protection from purely automated records to many classes of manual records. Whereas the 1984 Act only applied to computerised records, the 1998 Act applies fully to all patient records whether they are held on computer or in paper files, and whether they consist of hand written case notes or x-rays.

Secondly, it is clear that many practitioners are confused between the requirements of the Data Protection Act and those of the various regulatory and representative bodies within the sector including the GMC, MRC, and BMA. To some extent the advice issued by these different bodies may reflect their different roles. To some extent it may also reflect misunderstandings of the requirements of the Act. It is a common misconception, for instance, that the Act always requires the consent of data subjects to the processing of their data.

Type
Chapter
Information
Manual for Research Ethics Committees
Centre of Medical Law and Ethics, King's College London
, pp. 391 - 410
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2003

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