To Breach or not to Breach?

According to an article on Life & Health Library by Kim Oppenheimer and Greg Swanson, published in February of 1990, the law has required physicians to “breach confidentiality” when threatened with violence on others or the patient himself. This is required to protect the general public from harm. However, often patients are not well-informed as to which information will be disclosed and there are many gray areas. For example, should the physician disclose information on male “extra-marital” affairs to his spouse? In this case, one article implies that physicians attempt to withhold information from their spouse but suggest health checkups – kind of breaching, but not really. This is one of many responses to confidentiality breaching.