Canadian Centre for Elder Law A Practical ... - Your Legal Rights

!The legislation governing, respectively, occupational therapists and dental hygienists,confirms the ability of the health professional to breach confidentiality, called secrecy inQuébec, where “to prevent an Act of violence, including suicide… where there is animminent danger of death or serious bodily injury” (OT Code, art. 3.06.07, Hygienists’Code, art. 32.1). The Professional Code, which applies to nurses and lawyers, containsan identical exception to confidentiality (art. 60.4). This same section affirms solicitorclientprivilege.The Code of Ethics governing lawyers in Québec is also a statute. The Code of ethics ofadvocates (art. 3.06.01.01) contains an exception to the rules of confidentiality identicalto the one that applies to health professionals. It also adds, however, that a lawyer mayonly communicate the information to a person exposed to the danger or that person'srepresentative, and to the persons who can come to that person's aid.The Code also states that:An advocate who decides to communicate information that is protected byprofessional secrecy may only communicate such information as is necessary toachieve the purposes for which the information is communicated. He shall, inconnection with such communication, mention the following:(1) his identity and the fact that he is a member of the Barreau du Québec ;(2) that the information he will communicate is protected by professionalsecrecy ;(3) that he is availing himself of the possibility offered to him at law to setaside professional secrecy in order to prevent an act of violence, because hehas reasonable cause to believe that there is an imminent danger of death orserious bodily injury to a person or group of persons ;(4) the nature of the threats or act of violence he intends to prevent ;(5) the identity and, if possible, the contact information for the person orgroup of persons exposed to the danger ; and(6) the imminence of the danger in question (art. 3.06.01.02).Nova Scotia1. Key Legislation• Adult Protection Act, R.S.N.S 1989, c. 2• Protection for Persons in Care Act, S.N.S. 2004, c. 33• Protection for Persons in Care Regulations, N.S. Reg. 364/2007• Domestic Violence Intervention Act, S.N.S. 2001, c. 29• Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act, S.N.S. 1993, c. 5! ""!