Failure to obtain informed consent is a breach of article 3 of the Human Rights Act. Written informed consent should be obtained before taking medical photographs despite this taking more time, to avoid future medical litigation 5 verbal consent is insufficient. 11 The use of smartphones has also improved triaging and management of inpatient dermatology consultations. The use of smartphones in hospitals can aid in speeding-up specialist consultations, for example, Muir et al.’s study revealed that emergency departments received dermatology consultations within two hours by using smartphones. reported that smartphones were used for sending and receiving images by 50% of Australian dermatology residents and specialists and that these medical photographs were electronically stored with limited privacy and security settings. found that in Canada, 89% of surveyed surgeons and residents have taken medical photographs using smartphone devices. The new patient agreed to have the procedure.Ĭhan et al. In an attempt to ease her anxiety, he showed her the pre-and post-operative photographs of his previous patient from his personal smartphone. The surgeon explained the procedure to her and answered her questions. One month later, an anxious patient presented at the surgeon’s clinic for the same procedure. He covered her genital area and took photographs with his personal smartphone. Inside the operating room and before starting the surgery, the surgeon repeated the request for photographs to be taken by him to compare with the post-operative photographs. During a pre-operative visit, the surgeon asked permission for medical photograph to be taken of her but she politely refused as she would have to expose herself to the male hospital photographer. The surgeon explained the procedure to her and the patient consented. Her surgeon reviewed her case and decided on multiple procedures, beginning with an abdominoplasty. ![]() She complained of debilitating extra skin all over her body that was affecting her socially and in her daily life. The following is a fictitious case scenario to exemplify the ethical and legal dilemmas of using personal smart-phones to take medical photographs.Ī 45-year-old female patient was referred to a plastic surgeon for an abdominoplasty after a sleeve gastrectomy had led to the patient losing 80 kg post-operatively in the first year. ![]() 6, 7 Guidelines on this topic should address five main areas-consent, storage, retention, audit and transmission. 5 In other jurisdictions, there are guidelines that regulate the practice of medical photography. In Oman, Article 332 of the Royal Decree 7/2018 is concerned with the photography of individuals without their consent however, this law is not explicit for medical photography. ![]() 2 These images are also used for teaching, research and publication purposes in addition to getting a second opinion from colleagues or consultants in the same or other specialities. Medical photographs are important in the management and follow-up of medical conditions, especially in visually oriented specialities such as dermatology and plastic surgery. This technology has provided healthcare workers with the ability to take high quality photographs that are automatically stored electronically on user-friendly devices at a low cost. These devices continually advance and have rapidly developed over recent years to allow people to perform many functions with minimum effort, such as professional photography. Nowadays, smartphones and other electronic devices are used everywhere.
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