Patient Privacy Checklist for Medical Posters and Case Reports

Look beyond names

Dates, geography, age, occupation, rare diagnoses, distinctive history, faces, tattoos, device labels, and combinations of facts may identify someone. Review the complete public narrative, not fields in isolation, and follow the responsible jurisdiction and institution.

• Inspect screenshots and metadata.
• Review unique fact combinations.
• Do not rely on blurred names.

Separate private inputs and public outputs

Use approved transfer and storage for source records, limit access, and define retention. Public PDFs, QR destinations, and conference platforms require separate review because they may be copied and retained beyond the event.

• Never open-link restricted files.
• Keep required access records.
• Name the public-output approver.

Document consent and approval

Consent to treatment is not automatically permission to publish. Record publication consent, ethics decisions, image rights, and conference requirements. Repeat review on the exported PDF because hidden labels or objects can reappear during production.

• Inspect every delivered file.
• Retain approvals appropriately.
• Stop when authority is unclear.

A practical example

A radiology image may hide the patient name yet expose date, institution, accession number, and birth date along its edge. The final PDF must be checked again.

Design only from approved, de-identified content

Poster Academia can work from material cleared by your team; medical consent, ethics, and privacy decisions remain with your institution.

Sources and further reading

• Guidance on De-identification of Protected Health Information — U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
• The CARE Guidelines: Consensus-based Clinical Case Reporting Guideline Development — EQUATOR Network
• Creating a Scientific Poster — National Institutes of Health