3.3 Confidentiality and Access to Information
You should have an effective policy on confidentiality. This should describe the circumstances in which information may be passed on. It should also explain how breaches of this confidentiality will be dealt with. The policy should include the required forms of authority which will allow your service to act on behalf of service users. All service users must be kept informed of any information that has been passed to others.
You must also have a clear policy on access to information. This should explain what information is held about clients and how service users can access this information.
Every service user has the right to expect that the service which he/she receives is provided in confidence and that any records kept by the agency are fair and accurate. The service user should have access to any records kept about the case. Service users have a legal right to access information kept on file about them.
You must provide confidential interview space. Service users have the right to be advised confidentially and in private.
Your Confidentiality Policy should make clear the level of information a service user may be asked to give in a public reception area. Interview procedures, case files and enquiry records should also be included.
The need for confidentiality should not prevent discussion of a case within the service. Casework audits should be carried out and the Confidentiality Policy should allow for assessments to be made as to whether standards of advice are being met. You should be clear about the distinction between confidentiality and anonymity. A client-centred service must balance respect for the personal details provided with steps to ensure that the service user’s needs are met in the most effective way. If service users are kept informed of the way in which information is being used and agree to this then confidentiality should not hinder the advice process.
Consent forms must be signed so that the service user gives permission for details to be passed to a third party when necessary. You must make sure that the service user is fully aware of what he/she is signing.
If there is a clear danger to the service user or to someone else, you may need to breach confidentiality.
Ensuring confidentiality in some localities, particularly in rural areas, can raise broader issues in relation to access. A specific service, for example a Debt Support Unit, which identifies the problems of people visiting the service, may have a low take-up. In order to preserve confidentiality in these cases, it may be necessary to provide non-specified sessions or to work through other agencies.
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(c) Scottish Accessible Information Forum, 2007
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