I recently discovered that I have a sexually transmitted infection. The doctor advised me to inform my ex-partner, with whom I had unprotected sex, but I fear personal and legal consequences. I would like to know if there is an obligation to inform him and what risks those face who, knowing their condition, continue to have relations without warning their partner.
M.L.
The diagnosis of a sexually transmitted infection belongs to the most intimate sphere of the person and is a health data subject to particularly strict protection. However, this does not mean that those who know their condition can ignore the risk of transmitting the disease to others.
There is no general rule that requires the patient to disclose their diagnosis to anyone. The situation changes when there is a partner concretely exposed to the contagion. In that case, the duty not to harm others’ health and the rules of civil and criminal liability come into play.
Anyone who, knowing they are affected by a transmissible infection, knowingly has unprotected relations without informing the other person may be held liable for damages if the contagion occurs. The transmission of a disease constitutes an injury to psychophysical integrity and may entail compensation for biological, moral, and financial damage, including medical expenses and consequences on personal and work life.
In more serious cases, the crime of personal injury may also be configured. Jurisprudence has already examined cases in which a person, aware of their HIV-positive status, had concealed this condition and continued to have unprotected relations. Responsibility must be assessed considering the knowledge of the diagnosis, the information received from healthcare professionals, the type and frequency of relations, the precautions taken, the actual contagion, and the psychological attitude of the perpetrator.
Not every infection subsequently detected by the partner automatically proves who transmitted it. In any trial, it is necessary to reconstruct the timing of diagnoses, previous health conditions, other possible exposure factors, and the scientific characteristics of the disease. Messages, reports, prescriptions, and communications between the parties can assume considerable importance. Proving the causal link can be particularly complex when previous tests that allow temporal placement of the contagion are missing.
However, protecting the partner’s health does not authorize indiscriminate disclosure of the diagnosis. For HIV, the law provides particularly strict guarantees: the test results must be communicated exclusively to the person concerned, and healthcare workers must protect confidentiality. Therefore, the doctor cannot normally replace the patient and freely reveal the diagnosis to the partner or family members without the consent of the person concerned.
The most correct solution is not silence but a reserved and timely communication, preferably agreed upon with the doctor or the health service that made the diagnosis. The partner must be able to undergo the necessary tests, receive any treatments, and adopt the indicated precautions.
Informing them does not automatically mean admitting responsibility for the contagion but serves to prevent a known risk from causing further consequences.
Legal help desk service: Il Tirreno relies on the competent and qualified collaboration of the law firm Depresbìteris-Scura. The professionals of this firm answer weekly questions sent to sportellolegale@iltirreno.it.
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