Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:The Culture of Health Care
Unit:Privacy, Confidentiality, and Security
Lecture:Definitions of privacy, confidentiality, and security
Slide content:Personal Privacy vs. the Common Good Concerns expressed in ACLU video Scary Pizza A spectrum of views: One end holds that while personal privacy is important, there are some instances when the common good of society outweighs it, such as in biosurveillance ( Gostin & Hodge, 2002; Hodge, Gostin , & Jacobson, 1999) The other end holds that personal privacy trumps all other concerns (Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, 2009; see also video by Deborah Peel, Designing Technology to Restore Privacy, http://www.patientprivacyrights.org ) More balanced views? ( California Health Care Foundation , 2008; Detmer , 2010; American College of Physicians, 2011) Where do your views fit? 8
Slide notes:Consider the notion of personal privacy versus the common good. Some of the concerns are well demonstrated in a video that was produced in 2011 by the American Civil Liberties Union, which is available at https://youtu.be/33CIVjvYyEk . In this video, a pizza restaurant has access to customers medical information, and they penalize them for things like ordering extra cheese when their cholesterol levels are shown to be high. It is a video worth watching even though it takes a very specific point of view. Theres a broad spectrum of views on personal privacy versus the common good, often reflecting underlying political beliefs. At one end of the spectrum is the view that although personal privacy is important, there are some instances when the common good of society outweighs personal privacy. An example that is often given is biosurveillance [buy-oh-sur- vay - lehns ], whether it is monitoring emerging natural diseases or things like bioterrorism. Early intervention and response is possible with more information. Another example is clinical research. When more clinical research is conducted, the ability to provide quality health care is increased. The other end of the spectrum holds that personal privacy trumps everything, that there should really be no reason to violate a persons privacy without explicit consent. Others have called for a more balanced approach between personal privacy and the common good. For more information on this topic, some good articulations can be found in documents from the California Health Care Foundation, an editorial by Dr. Don Detmer , and a policy paper from the American College of Physicians. As with many ethical issues, there are no explicitly right or wrong answers, and each individual has to decide where their views fall on the spectrum; however, the U.S. political process, not the individual, will more than likely determine how personal privacy and common good in terms of health care are balanced. 8