Your personal health is your own business. It’s a private matter, but the immediacy of digital mobile devices is putting your privacy in jeopardy.Chantelle Simmons, who sits on the Ethics Committee of the Bermuda Hospitals Board, said the technology has given rise to many ethical questions.This week the committee is highlighting some of those issues as they relate to health. Dr Simmons, in an interview with Body & Soul, explained that the issues extend beyond the local hospitals.Tweeting, Facebook and BlackBerry messaging are practically instantaneous and postings to them, although they might be well meaning, can infringe on a person’s private medical information.“As we communicate we need to maintain attention to the medium we are using and ensure we are not doing so in a private matter,” said Dr Simmons.“Twitter is real time messaging. Often the patient doesn’t know their information is being sent out.”And she said there have been local cases where the patient information was made public in this way even before the family was notified.“Before the person has even reached the hospital this info is out there,” said Dr Simmons. “Everyone has a right to privacy of their personal healthcare information.It’s instinctive to pick up your BlackBerry or iPhone but this information is instantly disseminated.“It should not be distributed without the subject’s consent and is not appropriate for wide distribution.”She said while it might be tempting, the public needs to avoid sharing “another person’s healthcare information”.And cell phones are not the only manner such information is being shared.“The same is true for public messaging boards like those for newspapers,” she said. “We are encouraging people to think when posting in public forums, whether the person would want that degree of exposure.”It’s conceivable that some people would not want to share that they even had to be in the hospital. Dr Simmons said she’s learned of instances where this right has not been considered.“We have heard of cases where friends are visiting someone and take a photo of someone else who they happen to see in the Emergency Ward,” said Dr Simmons.She urged the public not to do this.“Stop pause and think — would person X be okay with this being distributed? When you are at the hospital you are not feeling your best and you may not want the image sent for personal or professional reasons,” said Dr Simmons.“Everyone needs to consider how digital media can breach the confidentiality of our citizens and think through the implications for the individual as well as for their family.”