Photo Credit: Valeriy_G

Privacy is a vital part of patient care, especially for adolescents. Here are tips for physicians on how they can improve privacy during virtual healthcare visits.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the adoption of virtual healthcare, offering flexibility and accessibility that can be particularly appealing to adolescent patients. Telemedicine provides a convenient way for young people to receive healthcare services while avoiding the need for transportation and reducing time away from school or other activities. However, just as with in-person visits, implementing adolescent-centered healthcare practices and maintaining confidentiality during virtual visits is essential. By doing this successfully, we can empower young people to actively participate in their healthcare. Ensuring that young people have positive interactions with their healthcare providers can lead to more preventive visits and lifelong engagement in their health and well-being.

 Improving Privacy in Virtual Healthcare Visits 

“Ensuring privacy is key to providing adolescent-centered care. It’s important to keep in mind that privacy is even more critical during virtual care, as the provider often cannot tell who is within earshot of the young person.”- Azzia Thompson, Project Coordinator, ETR  

In virtual healthcare settings, maintaining privacy can be a challenge due to the lack of control over the patient’s environment. In a clinical setting, healthcare providers can manage privacy by controlling the check-in process and exam room environment, but during virtual visits, patients may face challenges finding a private space. Here are four key tips to improve the privacy of virtual healthcare visits for adolescents:

1. Assess the Patient’s Environment: Start by asking your patient if they feel they are in a private space for the virtual visit. If patients do not feel they are, suggest moving their device to another location or using a sound barrier such as background music or TV noise to increase privacy.
2. Offer Flexibility, When Possible: If privacy remains a concern and your patient cannot find a suitable space, consider switching to a phone visit instead of a video visit. Phone visits are easier to conduct and allow patients the freedom to move to a car, take a walk, or find a more private location.
3. Maintain Confidentiality: If a caregiver or anyone else is present with the adolescent, ask them to leave for a portion of the visit, just as you would during an in-person visit. This ensures that adolescents can speak freely and share information without interference.
4. Trust the Patient: Trust your patient‘s assessment of their environment. If patients say they are in a private space, respect their judgment even if you notice someone in the background or hear other voices. Ultimately, the young person is the best judge of their comfort and safety.

Discussing the Limitations of Confidentiality

Discussing the limitations of confidentiality during virtual visits is a crucial aspect of adolescent-centered care. Patients need to understand the nuances of telemedicine services. Some things to consider:

• Which primary care services can patients access virtually?
• Which healthcare services can minors consent to in your state? Does this include reproductive health services and mental health services?
• How will the Explanation of Benefits (EOB) be displayed for confidential services?

Many health centers create parent-proxy accounts so that parents or caregivers can be informed partners in their child’s health and well-being. With parent-proxy accounts, healthcare providers can still ensure that any confidential information in the electronic medical record system, such as minor-consented visits, provider notes, or test results, is limited by marking it as confidential or using discreet coding for confidential services when possible. Be sure to consult with your health center team on what confidentiality practices are available in your online records.

Adolescents face unique challenges during virtual visits, and healthcare providers must adopt strategies to offer them comprehensive care while respecting their privacy and confidentiality. By doing so, you can offer adolescent patients a comfortable and empowering experience that encourages them to remain engaged with their healthcare providers throughout their lives.

Additional Resources

Looking for additional ways to support young people during their healthcare visits? Access this free on-demand webinar, Providing Adolescent-Centered Virtual Care from ETR and the Adolescent Health Initiative.