The hidden risks of the waiting room: confidentiality and cross-infection

No one likes to spend longer than necessary waiting for their appointment at the GP practice. But as well as causing inconvenience, waiting rooms can also pose hidden risks in terms of information and infection: both can be unintentionally passed on to others. The very fact that a patient has to attend in person necessitates at least a minor breach of confidentiality, because there will almost always be other people in the waiting room observing the patient’s presence. If a patient’s particular illness has obvious and recognisable symptoms, being recognised can be a more serious breach of confidentiality because the other person now knows or suspects what condition the patient has. If an acquaintance, family member, or friend happens to be there, then the patient will be both identifiable and identified. This might not seem like a breach. However, if a file containing the names of those who had attended a GP practice on a given day was found on a bus, then that would be a breach of confidentiality — even if it …