Information sharing
The first step should always be to seek consent.
Information sharing is about balancing these considerations:
- Pressing need
- Respective risk to those affected
- Interest of other agency/person receiving it
- Duty of Confidentiality
- Risk of not disclosing
- Public interest in disclosure
- Human rights
Personal Data (Data Protection Act 1998) - guidance
Disclosures in the public interest are justified if:
- This may assist in the prevention, detection and prosecution of a serious crime, or
- Where failure to disclose would put the patient or someone else at serious risk