As information technologies change, you will need to be aware of the capabilities of these new technologies and the obligations they impress upon us to protect our organizations' and patients' information. This exercise addresses a new mode for archiving patient information and a request to share information. You will have to explore and explain our obligations and the patient's rights in this type of situation. Finally, you will have to make a recommendation regarding the release of information that demonstrates your command of this week's material.
To address the questions in this assignment, read:
- Office for Civil Rights. (n.d.) The HIPAA privacy rule's right of access and health information technology. Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/special/healthit/eaccess.pdf (ATTACHED)
- HealthVault. (2013). What can you do with HealthVault? Retrieved from https://www.healthvault.com/us/en/overview
If you wish to learn more, you can go the HealthVault website:
- HealthVault. (2013). HealthVault. Retrieved from https://www.healthvault.com/us/en
You are the chief information officer for your organization. You have an email from your director of medical records regarding a request from a patient. The patient wants a digital copy of his medical records added to his HealthVault account. He would prefer that you directly add them to the site. The email that has been sent to you has a link to the HealthVault site. (The one you have available here.) Your organization has never had a request like this before. The director of medical records wants to know what to do.
You are to utilize what you have learned about medical records and patients' rights to those records to address the request for assistance from your director of medical records. When crafting your response, address these issues:
- Describe the legal issues related to ownership of the medical records.
- Describe the legal issues related to access to medical records.
- Describe whether your interpretation of these obligations will result in your release of the records.
- In what form will you release the records if you decide to release them?
- Discuss any additional issues you see related to this request.
Your response to the director of medical records should be no longer than 1,000 words.