Abstract
The complex notion of patients’ confidentiality is recognized as a core principle that healthcare practitioners are required to observe. However, mature minor patients do not always enjoy such a right. Although it is often necessary to weight the costs and benefits of maintaining confidentiality for each unique circumstance, blanket benevolent arguments should not be routinely used to deny confidentiality to mature minors. Scientific research has demonstrated the negative consequences of such an approach. Having explored the universal human rights system, this article argues that the observance of confidentiality rights in healthcare is an international legal requirement to observe and implement when dealing with mature minors.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada provided generous financial support for writing this article. The author has no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.