Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Contravention of Statute Obligations

  • Reference work entry
Legal and Forensic Medicine

  • 236 Accesses

Abstract

Medical practitioners owe a duty of confidentiality to their patients. This is a duty not to use or disclose personal health information without their patient’s consent. The basis of such a duty arises under common law, professional ethics, and health privacy legislation. Various statutes have provided exceptions to this duty.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 899.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 899.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. See the High Court case of Breen v Williams (1996) 186 CLR 71 for a discussion of the common law position.

    Google Scholar 

  2. http://ama.com.au

  3. http://ama.com.au/codeofethics

  4. The AMA Guidelines for Doctors for Providing Patient Access to Medical Records (1997), Access to Medical Records by Doctors Who are Not Treating the Patients Concerned (2002), and Disclosing Medical Records to Third Parties (2010) can be found on the AMA website (see ref. [2] above).

    Google Scholar 

  5. Section 6 Privacy Act 1988 (Cwth).

    Google Scholar 

  6. See Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW), Health Records Act 2001 (Victoria), and Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997 (ACT).

    Google Scholar 

  7. For a summary of child protection legislation in Australian states and territories, see Resource Sheet No. 14, October 2009, Australian Institute of Family Studies, National Child Protection Clearinghouse – www.aifs.gov.au/nch/pubs/sheets/rs14/rs14.html.

  8. See Public Health Act 1997 (ACT), Notifiable Diseases Act 1981 (NT), Public Health Act 2010 (NSW), Public Health Act 2005 (QLD), Public and Environmental Health Act 1987 (SA), Public Health Act 1997 (TAS), Health (Infectious Diseases) Regulations 2001 (VIC), and Health Act 1911 (WA).

    Google Scholar 

  9. See Section 34A of Health Care Complaints Act 1993 (NSW), Section 55 of Health and Community Services Complaints Act (NT), Section 47 of Health and Community Services Complaints Act 2004 (SA), Section 45 of Health Complaints Act 1995 (TAS), Section 56 of Health Quality and Complaints Commission Act 2006 (QLD), and Sections 71 and 107, Health and Disability Services (Complaints) Act 1995, (WA).

    Google Scholar 

  10. See ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2008 Section 41(1)(a), Health Practitioners Act 2004 Sch 4 cl 2(1)(a) (NT), Health Practitioner Regulation (Adoption of National Law) Act 2009 (NSW) Sch 1 Section 150 J(1)(b), Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2009 Section 97(1)(b), Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (SA) Act 2010 Section 19(1)(b), Health Practitioners Tribunal Act 2010 Sections 36(a) and 42(1) (TAS), Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 Section 104(1)(b), and State Administrative Tribunal Act 2004 Section 66(1)(b) (WA).

    Google Scholar 

  11. See Breen v Williams in ref. [1] above.

    Google Scholar 

  12. See Health Services For Men Pty Limited v D’Souza and Ors (2000) NSWCA 56 and Mid-City Skin Cancer and Laser Centre v Zahedi–Anarak (2006) NSWSC 844.

    Google Scholar 

  13. There are similar provisions for preliminary discovery in other states and territories and the Federal Court. See Supreme Court Civil Rules 2006 Part 4, Rule 146 (SA), Supreme Court Rules Reg 32.05 (NT), Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2005 Order 32.05 (VIC), Supreme Court Rules 1971 Order 26A Rule 4 (WA), Court Procedural Rules – Reg 651 (ACT), and Supreme Court Rules 2000 – Reg 403E (TAS).

    Google Scholar 

  14. See the following cases for a discussion of the above principles: Cairns v Unicomb and Ors (2005) NSWSC 1279, Panasonic Australia Pty Limited v Ngage Pty Limited (2006) NSWSC 399, Hatfield v TCN Channel 9 Pty Limited (2010) NSWSC 161, and Papaconstuntinous v Holmes a Court and Anor (2006) NSWSC 945.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Other states and territories have similar provisions for the issuing of subpoenas. See Order 36B Supreme Court Rules 1971 (WA), Division 4 Supreme Court Civil Rules 2006 (SA), Uniform Civil Procedural Rules 1999 Part 4 (QLD), Supreme Court (General Civil Procedure) Rules 2005 Order 42 (VIC), Regulation 494 and ff Supreme Court Rules 2000 (TAS), and Supreme Court Rules – Reg 42 (NT).

    Google Scholar 

  16. See Royal Women’s Hospital v Medical Practitioners Board of Victoria (2006) VSCA 85.

    Google Scholar 

  17. See Section 118 and Section 119 of the Evidence Act 1995 (Cwth).

    Google Scholar 

Further Reading

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Norton Rose Australia, Level 18, Grosvenor Place, 225 George Street, 2000, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Paul Baram (Partner)

Authors
  1. Paul Baram
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Paul Baram .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia

    Roy G. Beran

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this entry

Cite this entry

Baram, P. (2013). Contravention of Statute Obligations. In: Beran, R. (eds) Legal and Forensic Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-32338-6_50

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation