How should sensitive information be shared between agencies?

• A. Share all data with all agencies regardless of consent
• B. Through consent where possible, or as mandated by law, with minimum necessary information shared
• C. Post publicly in a portal
• D. Only discuss with supervisor

Answer: (B)

Sharing sensitive information between agencies should respect privacy by using consent whenever possible and relying on laws when consent isn’t available, while always sharing only the minimum information needed to accomplish the objective. This means you obtain the person’s or family’s permission before sharing, clearly stating the purpose, and then limit the data to what is necessary for the receiving agency to assess safety, respond to the situation, or provide services. If there’s no consent, you must follow applicable laws or mandatory reporting requirements, and still restrict the disclosure to the smallest amount of information required to meet the legal need. This approach protects confidentiality, reduces risk of misuse, and supports coordinated but responsible interagency work.

Exposing all data to every agency, posting sensitive information publicly, or restricting sharing to a supervisor would violate privacy protections and hinder appropriate interagency action.