Who Should Be Looking at Your Medical Records?

The final version of the current stimulus bill that has been passed in both the House and Senate created an “Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology,” of which the coordinator will compile a national database and plan for “the utilization of an electronic health record (EHR) for each person in the United States by 2014” (2009, Lucas). Whether a person is just accident prone or has serious health issues, they constantly have to fill out medical forms each doctor or emergency room visit. This database could reduce the amount of paperwork needed by hospitals if they were allowed access to the records. Paperwork is a problem when a nurse cannot read the doctor’s handwriting for a patient’s prescription. Several hospitals, including St. Vincent hospital, part of the Clarion Health Network, are in the process of installing or have installed operating systems in which nurses can enter patient information into a computer database so the records can be accessed by different departments. The technology has allowed easier communication between hospital departments individually and with patients’ insurance companies.

However, a computerized system leaves private information vulnerable. While President Obama thinks an electronic medical record will reduce error rates and long-term cost of health care, and create jobs right now (2009, Lucas), many security measures have to be put in place before the information can be truly secure. Patients could become the targets of identity theft from computer hackers. The information could also become susceptible when it is sent to insurance companies for billing purposes. While staff could also view paperwork they shouldn’t, they could view personal information easier on a computer and close it when someone comes than they could with paperwork. The only people who should be able to see personal medical records should be those authorized by the patient to view them, such as nurses, doctors, insurance agents, family, or close friends. Unless health care is universalized, the government does not necessarily need to know everyone's history.
What do you think?

Referenced Article:
Lucas, F. (2009, February 12). Final Stimulus Bill Creates Government Database that Will Hold Every American’s Personal Medical Records. Retrieved March 21, 2009 from CNSNews.com. Web Site: http://www.cnsnews.com/Public/content/article.aspx?Rsrc ID=43463