Patients are filming their NHS medical treatment for TikTok and Instagram, potentially putting them and others at risk, medical professionals have said.
Ashley d’Aquino, a therapeutic radiographer working in London, said a rising number of patients are choosing to film their treatment for social media.
The Society of Radiographers (SoR) said it is causing healthcare staff unnecessary anxiety when they are trying to carry out their job and is putting patient confidentiality at risk.
The organisation added that distracting staff and making them uncomfortable could compromise the delivery of their medical treatment.
The SoR is calling for the NHS to implement policies to prevent patients from photographing or filming clinical procedures without permission.
Ms d’Aquino, who is a union rep, told the SoR’s annual delegates’ conference that members of staff had approached her over patients recording some of their cancer treatment.
She said one worker agreed to take photos for a patient, “but when the patient handed over her phone, the member of staff saw that the patient had also been covertly recording her to publish on her cancer blog”.
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“As NHS staff, we wear name badges, so our names will be visible in any video. It makes people feel very uncomfortable and anxious,” Ms d’Aquino explained.
Filming treatments also puts patient confidentiality at risk, another worker explained.
A radiology department assistant from the south coast said she was using a cannula on a cancer patient when the patient’s 19-year-old daughter started filming the procedure without asking for permission.
“She wanted to record the cannulation because she thought it would be entertaining on social media,” she said.
But in the next bay, a patient was having consent taken for a virtual colonoscopy, which is “an invasive and potentially embarrassing procedure”. The consent, including names and dates of birth, could have been recorded on the video, putting the patient at risk.
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“There are people who come into our department who have a limited social media presence because of risks to their safety. Patients filming make them feel unsafe in their own hospital,” she said.
The department assistant said she had sleepless nights worrying about whether she did her job properly in this situation.
Filming treatments affects all healthcare workers, according to Dean Rogers, SoR director of industrial strategy and member relations.
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He said all hospital trusts should have policies in place around patients taking photos and filming procedures to stop people filming without staff knowledge and permission.
“Hospitals need to ensure that they meet the needs of patients while also looking after staff members’ wellbeing,” Mr Rogers said.
“And, in this case, safeguarding the one simultaneously safeguards the other – allowing healthcare professionals to do their job in safety, while also protecting patients’ privacy and helping them to receive the best possible care.”
Ms d’Aquino acknowledged that there may be some valid reasons for patients to record medical conversations, for example, to “enhance their understanding and retention of medical information” by making audio recordings of consultations.
