When relatives start to intrude

‘Business Dilemmas’

Dr Bev Ward (right), MDU medico-legal adviser, looks at dilemmas you might face when dealing with patients’ relatives.

Dilemma 1

Should I honour secrecy appeal?

Q I’m an orthopaedic surgeon and recently performed an arthroscopy on a 60-year-old man. While the patient was still coming round from surgery, the patient’s wife took me to one side and said that she didn’t want me to pass on any information about her husband’s condition to his son.

She said they had had a difficult relationship for years and he really didn’t want his son to know anything about his treatment.

I understand from a colleague that the son rang earlier to ask about how his father was recovering. What should I tell him?