What kind of punishment is given to hospital professionals for SUCH act In INDIA?check details.?

Question

IMAGINE some GOVERNMENT maternity hospital's doctor 'D' gives NAME & ADRESSES of few of her patients who delivered babies there; to some other doctor ' L' for L's PERSONAL use ,
WITHOUT taking CONSENT of those patients.
'L' don't have any professional relation with those patients in any way.
Q1~~Is not it BREACH of PROFESSIONAL SECRECY by 'D'?
Q2~~Are both of them ( D & L ) responsible for it or only D is responsible for breaching privacy of patients ?
Q3~~What actions can be taken against such docters by aggrieved patients?
Q4~~What kind of punishment is given to doctors for such acts ?
Q5~~What if the same act is done by other NON-Medical staff of that maternity hospital in INDIA?

Answer 1

Since this question relates to medical practitioners we first have to check whether such an act of disclosing the name & addresses of few of the patients of a Government maternity hospital's doctor D without taking the consent of the patients to some other doctor L for professional use amounts to unethical act or professional misconduct on the part of D under the provisions of Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 read with Indian Medical Council (Professional conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002. Or not. The said regulations as noted above in provides Chapter 2-DUTIES OF PHYSICIANS TO THEIR PATIENTS 2.2 provides Patience, Delicacy and Secrecy : Patience and delicacy should characterize the physician. Confidences concerning individual or domestic life entrusted by patients to a physician and defects in the disposition or character of patients observed during medical attendance should never be revealed unless their revelation is required by the laws of the State. Sometimes, however, a physician must determine whether his duty to society requires him to employ knowledge, obtained through confidence as a physician, to protect a healthy person against a communicable disease to which he is about to be exposed. In such instance, the physician should act as he would wish another to act toward one of his own family in like circumstances.
CHAPTER 7 of the regulation provides - MISCONDUCT The following acts of commission or omission on the part of a physician shall constitute professional misconduct rendering him/her liable for disciplinary action - 7.14 provides :- The registered medical practitioner shall not disclose the secrets of a patient that have been learnt in the exercise of his / her profession except –
in a court of law under orders of the Presiding Judge;
in circumstances where there is a serious and identified risk to a specific person and / or community; and
notifiable diseases.
In case of communicable / notifiable diseases, concerned public health authorities should be informed immediately. In this case since the doctor D in question is a government maternity hospital hence lets see what section 166 of the Indian Penal Code states :-
Whoever, being a public servant, knowingly disobeys any direction of the law as to the way in which he is to conduct himself as such public servant, intending to cause, or knowing it to be likely that he will, by such disobedience, cause injury to any person, shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.
Let us also see what punishment the above mentioned Indian Medical Council (Professional conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002 provides under Chapter 8 8.2 Provides :- It is made clear that any complaint with regard to professional misconduct can be brought before the appropriate Medical Council for Disciplinary action. Upon receipt of any complaint of professional misconduct, the appropriate Medical Council would hold an enquiry and give opportunity to the registered medical practitioner to be heard in person or by pleader. If the medical practitioner is found to be guilty of committing professional misconduct, the appropriate Medical Council may award such punishment as deemed necessary or may direct the removal altogether or for a specified period, from the register of the name of the delinquent registered practitioner. Deletion from the Register shall be widely publicized in local press as well as in the publications of different Medical Associations/ Societies/Bodies. In the present case the act of D in disclosing the name & address of few of the patients to L can be said to be included under the provisions of as Confidences concerning individual or domestic life entrusted by patients to a physician and the registered medical practitioner shall not disclose the secrets of a patient that have been learnt in the exercise of his / her profession, as the name & their address were being a part of their individual identity that entrusted by the patients to such a doctor & it also identify them with their secrets that this doctor learnt in exercise of her profession, she was not even legally bound to disclose these as provided in the proviso attached with chapter 7.14 her conduct in disclosing the identity of the individual patients to another doctor L can be said to amounting to her professional misconduct for which a complaint can be made against her under the Indian Medical Council Act with the State Medical Council as well she being a public servant under section 166 of the Indian Penal Code. Doctor L can be charged for abetting this misconduct & offence and also be made party to such a complaint. As far non medical staff of the government hospital is concerned they too are covered under section 166 of the Indian penal Code being public servant .