Privacy, medical confidentiality, and health in Tanzania

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorTemba, Ferdinand Marcel
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-15T06:48:37Z
dc.date.available2026-07-15T06:48:37Z
dc.date.issued2023
dc.descriptionBook Chapter
dc.description.abstractThis chapter analysed the protection of patient confidential information and privacy in the health sector. It considers the legal framework based on inter- national influences by international instruments and other sources of law in Tanzania from legislative to received laws. From the outset, the chapter finds that the law of confidentiality and privacy in the health sector is underdevel- oped. While Tanzania complies with the international legal position on privacy and confidentiality, the customisation of the rules through local legislation has been taking place slowly. There is no general law on protection of patient confidential information only that the health practitioners are guided by a few specific laws such as the HIV and AIDS (Prevention and Control) Act, 2008, and Human DNA Regulation Act 2009. The Codes for Conduct and Ethics for specific health professionals such as medical professionals and dentists, nurses and midwives, radiology and imaging professionals, pharmacists, and optom- etry provide limited guidelines for the standards of medical confidentiality and privacy as well as the exceptions to medical confidentiality and privacy. Despite these setbacks, the health system is organised and prepared to deal with emerging health challenges although crudely, while maintaining the privacy and confidentiality of patients. For instance, the development of science and technology has led to the enactment of laws to address issues likely to cause difficulties in the day-to-day activities of health professionals and thus laws such as the Human DNA Regulation Act 2009 were enacted to address such changes. The few existing laws, albeit, in summary, set standards of privacy and confidentiality and provide for the grounds for disclosure of confidential information which range from statutory exceptions to disclosure due to public interest. COVID-19 which hit the world in late 2019 made Tanzania to adopt and customize World Health Organisation COVID-19 standards and set guide- lines for the prevention and vaccination of COVID-19.
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.suaire.sua.ac.tz/handle/20.500.14820/7795
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherElgar
dc.subjectPrivacy
dc.subjectMedical confidentiality
dc.subjectHealth-Tanzania
dc.titlePrivacy, medical confidentiality, and health in Tanzania
dc.typeBook chapter

Files

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
Temba_Ferdinand_Marcel_SUA_BookChapter_2023.pdf
Size:
337.29 KB
Format:
Unknown data format
Description:
Book Chapter
Download

License bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.75 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description:
Download

Collections

Articles, Conference and Workshop Papers Collection