Public medical care is the backbone of the health system. Trust and confidence in it are paramount. Respect for patients’ privacy is fundamental. The confidentiality of the doctor-patient relationship is at the core. It must be upheld. It is understandable that the arrest and dismissal of a young intern doctor for misconduct, on suspicion of unauthorised access to patient data, has aroused concern.

In a statement that referred to social media posts about the inappropriate acts of an intern doctor across different hospitals, the Hospital Authority said it considered the issue “extremely serious” for the professional image of healthcare staff. The authority alleged that the 24-year-old intern, who is also a social media influencer, had accessed the clinical medical system using another person’s account without authorisation at Caritas Medical Centre in Sham Shui Po and browsed the data of Tuen Mun Hospital patients. She was arrested on suspicion of accessing a computer with dishonest intent. A resident doctor at Tuen Mun Hospital was suspended.

The Hospital Authority said it had previously seriously warned the intern doctor over an inappropriate act during an internship at Ruttonjee Hospital and taken disciplinary action against her and another resident doctor over incidents at Caritas Medical Centre.

Earlier, she had posted photos on social media of X-ray sessions on her knee, which she called “perks”. The arrest reportedly comes near the end of her internship, ahead of assessment by her medical school of her fitness to practise. The matter could adversely affect her future.

The incident is a salutary reminder to practitioners in service professions to resist the temptation of social media and uphold professional standards. Patient and client confidentiality is sacred. Now that technology makes it easier for private information to be exposed, there may be a need to step up training to ensure professional confidentiality is scrupulously observed.

The Hospital Authority has rightly reiterated that it has zero tolerance for any behaviour that undermines patient safety and doctors’ professional conduct or that violates professional medical standards. There is room to redouble efforts to instil awareness of ethics and sensitivity about patient confidentiality.