NDAs in healthcare: what a clause cannot stop

What an NDA usually covers in a healthcare job

NDA stands for non-disclosure agreement. In healthcare, you will meet confidentiality wording in three main places: your employment contract, a locum or service agreement, and a settlement agreement when you leave. The wording often covers business information, such as pricing, contracts with commissioners or supplier terms. Some clauses also cover the amount paid under a settlement, or stop both sides making negative comments about each other.

Patient information is a separate matter. Your duty of confidence to patients comes from data protection law, the common law and your regulator's standards. An NDA does not create or remove this duty. For more on handling records when you raise a concern, read patient confidentiality when speaking up.

What a confidentiality clause cannot stop

The Acas guide to non-disclosure agreements (opens another website) sets out the limits. A clause cannot lawfully stop you:

• making a protected disclosure to your employer, to a prescribed regulator such as the GPhC, GMC, NMC or CQC, or to a legal adviser
• reporting a crime to the police
• discussing your pay with colleagues to check for equal pay
• sharing information about a crime with the police, a qualified lawyer, victim support services, healthcare professionals or close family, if you are a victim of crime in England or Wales

The GMC goes further for doctors. Its guidance on raising concerns says doctors must not enter into agreements with an employer which restrict them from raising patient safety concerns. The GPhC tells pharmacy professionals the duty to safeguard patients comes before other loyalties.

A clause which tries to cover these things may still appear in a draft. Wide wording does not make the clause lawful. Ask for the clause to name the exceptions in plain words, as Acas recommends in using agreements fairly (opens another website).

Changes under the Employment Rights Act 2025

The Employment Rights Act 2025 received Royal Assent on 18 December 2025. Two parts matter here. From 6 April 2026, reporting sexual harassment counts as a qualifying disclosure under whistleblowing law. The Act also gives the government power to make regulations against NDAs used to silence workers about harassment or discrimination. The GOV.UK timeline lists these regulations for 2027, with no fixed date. Until the regulations start, the older rules above apply. The 2025 Act covers Great Britain only.

A pharmacy example

Say a community pharmacist leaves after raising concerns about dispensing errors. The employer offers a settlement agreement with a clause banning any comment about "the business, its staff or its operations". The pharmacist still has a live worry about patient safety. Section 43J means the clause cannot stop a protected disclosure to the GPhC. The clause may still stop the pharmacist posting about the employer on social media, which falls outside whistleblowing protection.

Before you sign

1. Ask for the full agreement, including schedules and any policy the agreement mentions.
2. Mark each confidentiality, non-derogatory and "no admission" clause.
3. Check whether the clause lists exceptions for protected disclosures, police reports and regulators.
4. Write down any safety concern you still hold, with dates, so your adviser knows the full picture.
5. Book advice before the deadline. Read pressure to sign a contract or NDA if you feel rushed.

Questions to ask an adviser

• Which people and bodies can I still speak to under this wording?
• Does the clause name protected disclosures, police reports and regulators as exceptions?
• Can I tell my partner, doctor or therapist about the agreement?
• What happens to my payment if the employer says I broke the clause?
• Does Scottish or Northern Irish law change any of this for me?

Where to get advice

• Acas helpline: 0300 123 1100, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, for free employment rights advice. See our Acas guide.
• Protect: free, confidential whistleblowing advice on 020 3117 2520 or by webform. See Protect advice line.
• Your union or professional body: the PDA (opens another website) for pharmacists, the BMA (opens another website) for doctors and the RCN (opens another website) for nurses, if you are a member.
• Citizens Advice: free general help with work problems. See Citizens Advice for work problems.
• An employment solicitor: for advice on your exact wording. Prepare for the appointment first.
• Northern Ireland: the Labour Relations Agency on 03300 555 300.