Open disclosure in Ireland: legal framework, policy considerations, and the argument for a unified approach

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dc.contributor.authorTumelty, Mary Elizabethen
dc.date.accessioned2025-07-03T13:51:56Z
dc.date.available2025-07-03T13:51:56Z
dc.date.issued2021en
dc.description.abstractWhilst definitions vary, the principles underlying open disclosure remain the same: patients must be provided with prompt, honest, accurate information about their care, including where something has gone wrong. Open disclosure is a vital aspect of patient safety. As Quick explains, ‘[c]reating a culture of safety depends on a number of elements, but openness and honesty are critical.’ Patients have a right to learn about their care and be informed when a patient safety incident occurs. Open disclosure also aims to contribute to the important goal of patient safety through organisational learning. Various open disclosure policies and laws have been introduced over the past number of decades in countries throughout the world, including Ireland. The importance of open disclosure is well covered in the literature, and it is not proposed to detail the arguments here. Rather, the focus of this short article is on the open disclosure framework in Ireland, and the need for a unified approach. The article first provides background to open disclosure in Ireland, and the relevant legal framework. It then discusses some recent developments, namely the recommendations of the Independent Patient Safety Council on a national policy framework. Ultimately, the article argues that regulation and patient safety measures work best where the legal and ethical frameworks work in tandem, and concludes with some key learning points.en
dc.description.statusPeer revieweden
dc.description.versionAccepted Versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.citationTumelty, M. E. (2021) 'Open disclosure in Ireland: legal framework, policy considerations, and the argument for a unified approach', Medico-Legal Journal of Ireland, 27(2), pp. 71-74.en
dc.identifier.endpage74en
dc.identifier.issn1393-1792en
dc.identifier.issued2en
dc.identifier.journaltitleMedico-Legal Journal of Irelanden
dc.identifier.startpage71en
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/17668
dc.identifier.volume27en
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherBrehon Publishingen
dc.rights© 2021, Brehon Publishing.en
dc.subjectHealth policyen
dc.subjectIrelanden
dc.subjectMedical ethicsen
dc.subjectPatients’ rightsen
dc.subjectProvision of informationen
dc.subjectSafetyen
dc.titleOpen disclosure in Ireland: legal framework, policy considerations, and the argument for a unified approachen
dc.typeArticle (peer-reviewed)en
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