Ethics Guidance for Occupational Health Practice 9th Edition - Book - Page 100
5.32. Wherever possible, workers’ consent for disclosure of personal identifiable
information should be sought. However, if the data is anonymised prior to
sharing with the researcher this additional consent is not necessary. Particular
care should be taken with smaller groups of workers where anonymised data
may still allow for identification of an individual. In all cases the minimum
information necessary should be disclosed.
5.33. Researchers should be aware that in internet mediated research almost
anything can be traced back to its original source so offering an assurance of
absolute anonymity of the data may not be possible. OH professionals may find
the guidelines produced by the British Psychological Society 78 helpful.
5.34. Specific legal provisions apply to some organisations, such as the UK NHS,
where the use of identifiable patient information for research purposes without
consent in the public interest may be allowed in specific circumstances where it
is not possible to use anonymised information and where seeking consent is
not practical 2. Applications for support under provisions set out in The Health
Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002 (also known as
‘section 251 support’) are reviewed by the HRA’s Confidentiality Advisory Group
(CAG) who provide advice on whether there is sufficient justification to access
the requested confidential patient information. These provisions have enabled
the lawful use of patient information in special circumstances, for example by
cancer registries, which would otherwise be at risk of failure to comply with the
duty of confidence. Neither compliance with published guidance nor ethics
committee approval guarantees that actions are ethical, or even that they will
withstand legal challenge. Occupational health professionals who access
personal information for research purposes must therefore undertake their own
ethical analysis, take account of the statutory framework, and be prepared to
justify their actions.
2
Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 as re-enacted by Section 251 of the NHS Act 2006
allows the Secretary of State for Health to make regulations to set aside the common law duty of
confidentiality for defined medical purposes. The HRA took on responsibility for Section 251 in April
2013, establishing the Confidentiality Advisory Group (CAG) function.
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