Your right to confidential services

Even if you are under 16 you still have the same rights to confidentiality as anyone else and you should not be treated any differently.

Will the doctor tell my parents or show them my medical records?

No. doctors and nurses have very strict rules on confidentiality and the law says they have to keep all patient records and information completely private.

In exceptional circumstances, like when a doctor or health worker thinks you might be in serious danger, they might feel there is a need to pass information on but, even if they do, they must talk to you first before they tell anyone else. This applies to everyone, no matter what age you are.

What if I'm under 13?

Government guidance for workers in England means that they are likely to be more worried about young people under 13 who are having sex and might thing it would be in the young person's best interest to get some extra help from a social worker

More advice

If you are still worried about confidentiality you can always call your doctor’s surgery without telling them who you are and ask them some questions, like:

• Is the information that I give you kept confidential?
• Do you ever tell anyone else about young people who ask for contraception or advice about sex?
• Would you ever tell anyone else about my visit without telling me first?

Some people don’t want to go to their own doctor because they feel embarrassed or because they have known them for a long time or they are a family friend but, don’t worry, there are lots of other places you can go.

You can go to your nearest Brook Centre, young person’s service, family planning clinic or sexual health clinic and get free and confidential medical advice, contraception and treatment.

If you would like to have a free and confidential chat with an Ask Brook advisor, you can call us on 0808 802 1234. Your call will be confidential. That means we won't tell anyone about it.