MEDICAL SECRETS.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17247, 10 September 1921, Page 5

MEDICAL SECRETS.

. SHE LAW OP EVIDENCE. The statement was made dosing a discussion at tHe aimu& meeting of the British Medical Association held recently at Ne\\£a!>tle-on-Tyii6 that in New Zealand' medical 'men were ' protected by law from divnlging' information in civil cases. The proteptipn, • however, is not bo wide as this 'statement would -indicate-.- ■: Questioned on the subject, an Auckland --legal authority stated that Evidence Act in New Zealand, mado provision for according.to.certain witnesses in certain cases the privilege of not being asked questions which otherwise might be quite relevant. Among those given this privilege were pnysicians and surgeons. , With regard to them the rule was'that they snail not, without tho consent of the patient concerned, divulge in any civil proceedings any communication made, to them in their professional capacity by such patient, which was necessary to enable them to prescribe or act for the patient. This rule did not apply if the sanity of the patient was" in dispute in tho proceedings then being held. Moreover, there was nothing in the rule which would protect any communication made for a criminal purpose nbr prevent a physician or surgeon giving any evidence of any statement or representation made by a person effecting an insuranc© on his life 'or on the lire of any other person, ' , A doctor called to gfrcf/ evidence could not refuse to state tluit he had treated a person or to say what' he had treated the patient for.' The. privilege applied only to communications made to him by the patient. - /