STJ annuls lawsuit on abortion for breach of doctor’s confidentiality

The Sixth Panel of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) decided to suspend, on Tuesday (14), a criminal action opened against a woman, accused of committing the crime of abortion, for finding a breach of professional secrecy between the doctor and the patient. . For the ministers, the doctor committed several irregularities in his procedure that generated the nullity of the evidence gathered in the file.

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The patient would have been approximately 16 weeks pregnant when she felt unwell and sought the hospital. During the consultation, the doctor suspected that the patient had provoked an abortion by ingesting medication and, therefore, called the police. After the initiation of the investigation, the professional allegedly forwarded the patient’s medical record to the police authority to prove the fact and, in addition, ended up being listed as a witness.

In his vote, the rapporteur recalled that, according to article 207 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, persons who, due to their professional activities, must keep secret are prohibited from deposing – unless, authorized by the interested party, they want to give their a testimony.

“The doctor who attended to the patient fits the prohibition, since he shows himself as a necessary confidant, being prohibited from revealing a secret that he is aware of due to his intellectual profession, as well as from testifying about the fact as a witness”, said the rapporteur , minister Sebastião Reis Júnior.

The minister also mentioned that the Code of Medical Ethics prevents the professional from disclosing a secret that could expose the patient in criminal proceedings and even determines that, if called as a witness, he must declare the impediment.

Criminal lawyer Andrew Fernandes confirmed that the court’s decision is correct from a legal point of view. “This secrecy [previsto no CPP] it is a relevant legal asset (…) it is important to protect professional secrecy, as it would be impracticable to perform some functions. It would make conversations or even confessions with the priest unfeasible, assistance with psychologists. It is dangerous when those professionals who are supposed to keep secrets, don’t, ”he explained.