Patients recording consultations: getting the balance of patient choice and privacy right

Over the past 10 years, with advancements in technology facilitating our ability to record easily with our mobile devices, the Medical Protection Society (MPS) has seen a rise in the number of doctors asking where they stand if a patient has recorded their consultation or would like to record future appointments.

In most cases, the recordings are intended for personal use; they act as an aide memoir—perhaps for complex treatment regimens or to help the patient in recalling or understanding a difficult diagnosis when they get home.

The trend peaked during the covid-19 pandemic, when many patients were asked to attend healthcare appointments alone and visitors were restricted from coming into most hospitals. Against this backdrop, recording medical appointments was often beneficial and consensual, enabling family members to be included in decision making.

In recent years, however, more patients are filming their healthcare interactions with a wider audience in mind. The number of patients with a social media presence has increased and there are countless influencers with thousands of followers. This, coupled with the rise of social media platforms that favour video, has contributed to an increase in patients filming themselves undergoing medical procedures and uploading the recording to their TikTok or Instagram accounts. This motivation for capturing medical consultations feels—at least on the surface—less palatable.

This is exactly the trend the Society of Radiographers raised concerns about earlier this month.1 In one case a patient’s daughter began filming the insertion of a cannula into her mother’s hand because she thought it would be “entertaining” on social media.

Other concerns included the fact that permission was not sought to record, that healthcare professionals’ names were captured from their name badges, and, most importantly, that other patients on the ward or nearby were inadvertently caught on camera, with personal conversations and information filmed or captured in audio.

Unsurprisingly, the healthcare professional in the above example lost sleep worrying about whether she should have, or indeed could have, stopped the recording.

So, where does the regulator and Information Commissioner’s Office stand on the issue of recording medical treatments or procedures, and how should healthcare staff sensibly interpret the advice in this more extreme context?

In line with the principles of UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018, although doctors must obtain consent for their own recordings, patients don’t need permission to record their own consultations, as it is considered personal data processing.2 It becomes more complex, however, when a recording of one patient poses a risk to the privacy of another. The General Medical Council places great importance on maintaining patient confidentiality, as outlined in its guidance.3 Confidentiality is both a professional duty and a legal requirement for doctors. It is also fundamental to the trust between patients and doctors.

If a patient finds out that they feature in a video recorded by another patient, which has been shared extensively on social media, or hear their personal information within it, this would be a breach of their confidentiality. It is therefore sensible for healthcare professionals and providers to consider appropriate steps to avoid this and any associated repercussions.