Dr Megan Prictor1
1University Of Melbourne
Strong evidence from clinical trials supports the practice of giving patients an audio recording of their healthcare consultations: it improves patients’ knowledge and understanding and their sense of feeling supported. Smartphone availability means that patients also record their own appointments, either with permission or covertly. Research in the UK and US estimated the extent to which patients were recording their medical encounters, finding that around 2 in 3 patients would like to be able to record. To date, no Australian data have been available.
In this presentation we report on the results of a 2022 Australian survey aiming to identify the extent to which patients are recording their medical encounters. The survey also collected data on people’s reasons for recording, preferences for future recording, and intention to share recordings with others. The results indicate that covert recording – a practice of concern to some clinicians, but not always unlawful in Australia – is rare. Many patients would welcome the opportunity to record if it were accepted by the health service or clinician. Participants had a clear sense of the likely benefits of being able to re-listen to their consultation, in terms of understanding and recall of information, as well as sharing information with close family members. They also expressed concerns about, and misunderstanding of, the laws pertaining to this activity. The survey results are valuable to inform future policy development and legislative reform; both of which are needed to support acceptable, lawful and ethical consultation recording practices for better healthcare.
Biography:
Dr. Megan Prictor is a Senior Lecturer with the Health, Law and Emerging Technologies programme at Melbourne Law School and an affiliated researcher with the University’s Centre for Digital Transformation of Health. Her research includes clinical technologies and the law, data governance and innovative informed consent methodologies.