Ethical Issues In Health Care

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One of the roles of law in healthcare is to ensure that the ethical principles, beneficence and justice are put into practice. If healthcare professionals and/or healthcare providers fail to comply with their obligations and these ethical principles can be referred to a legal framework. (Montgomery, 2003). The right to privacy and protection of personal data was laid down in some legal instruments such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, The European Convention on Human Rights, the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, The European Data Protection Directive and A Declaration on the Promotion of Patients’ Rights, which will be discussed further on. In addition, the processing of personal information in EHR systems…show more content…
Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attack” (The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, p. 4) 2.2.2 The European Convention on Human Rights The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (European Convention on Human Rights), is a treaty established by the Council of Europe (CoE) in 1950 and applicable in all member states. The Convention contains 59 articles; Article 8 addresses the right to respect for private and family life: 1. Everyone has the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence. 2. There shall be no interference by a public authority with the exercise of this right except such as is in accordance with the law and is necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security, public safety or the economic well-being of the country, for the prevention of disorder or crime, for the protection of health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others (The European Convention on Human Rights, p.…show more content…
Finland , where disclosure of the details from the applicant’s medical file during a trial was ordered. According to the Court, it was a key principle that the confidentiality of health data be respected: “Any state measures compelling communication or disclosure of such information without the consent of the patient call for the most careful scrutiny” (Z. v. Finland, 1997). 2.2.3 Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union entered into force under the Lisbon Treaty of 2009. This Charter applies to the EU institutions and all EU member states. In addition, this Charter has the same legal value as the European Union treaties; it contains 54 articles, the issues of privacy (Article 7) and data protection (Articles 8 and 52) are addressed (the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, 2007): Article 7: Everyone has the right to respect for his or her private and family life, home and communications Article
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