How are privacy of records and confidentiality related?

• A. Privacy protects access to records, while confidentiality governs how patient information is disclosed and shared
• B. They are the same thing
• C. Privacy concerns only legal issues; confidentiality concerns only social issues
• D. Confidentiality protects access; privacy governs disclosure

Answer: (A)

Privacy and confidentiality cover two related but different protections for patient information. Privacy is about who has the right to access records and exercise control over personal data. It sets the boundaries for viewing and using information—who may see it, under what circumstances, and to what extent. Confidentiality, on the other hand, focuses on how that information is disclosed or shared. It’s the obligation to protect patient information from unauthorized release and to share it only with appropriate individuals or for proper purposes, following policies, consent, and legal requirements.

This distinction is why the correct statement is best: privacy protects access to records, while confidentiality governs how patient information is disclosed and shared. It reflects how medical records are safeguarded in practice—you enforce access controls and permissions (privacy), and you enforce rules about disclosure, handling, and protection during sharing (confidentiality).

Other options blur or swap these roles. They might imply privacy and confidentiality are the same thing, or assign each to only a subset of issues (legal vs social), or swap their functions (confidentiality protecting access and privacy handling disclosure). In reality, privacy is about access rights, and confidentiality is about controlling and protecting disclosures.