Medical Identity Theft Final Report, Essay Example

Introduction

The use of electronic health record has become widespread around the United States and abroad. Many physicians are converting to electronic health records because it helps to improve the decisions and outcomes that they make. Proper healthcare is dependent upon accurate information. Implementing electronic health records will take time and cannot be expected to work with perfection immediately. The use of electronic health records will ensure that patients receive the best possible care with the fewest errors.

Legal, Ethical, & Financial Dilemmas

The healthcare world is facing many challenges while trying to properly implement electronic health records (EHR). The legal system relies on precedent cases to guide decision, but since technology in this field is fairly new there are no cases to guide decisions. There is no way to determine to what extent physicians are responsible for the data they are viewing. This fact increases the physicians’ legal accountability. With this systems, it can be determined if physicians are reviewing or failing to review medical records. This is a great advantage over paper records because it cannot be determined who has viewed them. Bluntly speaking, physicians must be very careful in ensuring that each patient’s medical records are handled properly diminishing the possibility of malpractice.

Electronic health records are raising some ethical questions. Some patients are very concerned about their medical information being viewed by unauthorized persons. There have been cases where patient databases have been sold to health services researchers, medical device makers, and even pharmaceutical companies. For example, more than 1.8 million Americans have experienced the effects of medical identity theft (Booz, 2009). In some cases, patients are given an opt-out provision that will prevent their information from being transmitted electronically. One study conducted found that of the persons surveyed, fifteen percent of identity theft victims were misdiagnosed and fourteen percent were prescribed the wrong medicines (Hung, 2005).  However, this will require additional resources for physicians to maintain paper-based records too. This hassle might cause physicians to opt-out on providing services for these patients. Medical identity thefts have been on the rise in recent years. This type of theft is more dangerous than identity theft because the victim could die as a direct result of his/her medical data being tampered with.

It is estimated to cost physicians between 40,000 to 50, 000 dollars to implement electronic health records systems(Booz, 2009).There are some federal stimulus packages that will reimburse physicians for some of their costs, but private physicians are not eligible for those packages.  Also, the time frame for retention of medical records has increased. All records must be retained for 7 years after the last date the physician provided services to the patient. With paper records this really does not pose a problem because they can be securely locked in a dry area; however, for digital data, it is not that simple. Records that have been created with software almost 10 years old will be almost impossible to access, so inactive patients records must be updated and maintained digitally available.

Barriers to Successful Implementation of EHR

The cost of implementing EHR is the most difficult one that physicians are facing. The cost of implementing EHR include purchasing hardware or software, installation of network services, and the training of healthcare worker to properly operate the systems. Most patients prefer a face to face communication with their physicians. With tele-health quickly spreading, some people are afraid of the lack of personalization. Likewise, some physicians are just hesitant to change due to the physician culture, according to Michael Sinno (2011). Nonetheless, he feels this can be remedied by showing physicians how much easier electronic health records will make daily tasks for them, as well as the amount of money they will save in staffing (Sinno, 2011). There is always the risk of unauthorized access to patient information. This breach in confidentiality can be catastrophic for both the patient and the physician. For the patient it can mean that may have access to information they do not fully understand and as a result they may be mislead or confused. The physician may face malpractice liabilities suits if data is loss, destroyed, or inaccurate.

The Benefits of EHR

Many patients and physicians agree that the benefits of EHR greatly outweigh the barriers. When electronic health records are properly implemented patients will see an improvement in quality and convenience, improved accuracy in diagnoses, and improved coordination of care. For example,

“Healthcare is increasingly mediated by technology, and the implementation of CISs represents a new era of technological possibilities. As more sophisticated systems to manage patient information become available, there are rising expectations that these CISs will achieve outcomes for systems, users, managers, and patients. These outcomes, in turn, are expected to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare services” (Gruber, Cummings, LeBlanc, & Smith, 2009)

Physicians will have accurate up-to-date medical records for their patients which allows for speedier prognoses and recovery processes. One of the greatest benefits of the electronic records system is its ability to record the patient’s medical information and automatically alerts problems if there is a potential medicine conflict. This helps physicians become aware of potential problems that could lead to more serious consequences or even death.Another benefit of EHR is less billing errors. Patients have often complained of being charged for services they have not received. EHR software has been proven very effective in handling billing charges. Patients feel more confident that they will be accurately billed. Finally, EHR ensures coordinated care. Many patients have more than one physician. The use of this system ensures that proper communication occurs between all parties. One study that was conducted in the United Kingdom reported that 79 percent of healthcare workers believe that electronic health records are a good idea because it increases access and improves health care quality (Layman, 2008).

At Work

The concept of meaningful use is based upon the following: Improving quality, safety, efficiency, and reducing health disparities, engaging patients and families in their health, improving care coordination, improving population and public health, and ensuring adequate privacy and security protection for personal health information. To ensure that all of these components are being covered, the workers in my facility have had extensive training in the software system and avoidance of breach of security. Many of the nurses who are not tech savvy are reluctant to use the EHR because they are not well acquainted with technology, so to make them more comfortable each has been paired with a person who is tech savvy. This person will assist the other person until he/she feels comfortable using the system alone

Another way we are using the electronic health records is by making it accessible to the patients. Many patients have never viewed their health records and are unsure how to request access to those records. With patient portals, EHR software offers patients access to their medical records at any time. Patients can view lab results and send and receive messages to their physicians. This process will make it easier for both patients and physicians.

References

Booz, A. H.  (2009). Medical identity theft final report. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Gruber, D., Cummings, G., Leblanc, L., & D. Smith (2009). Factors influencing outcomes of clinical information systems implementation. CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing (27), 3. 151-163.

Hung, P.K. (2005). Towards a privacy access control model for e-health services. Faculty of Business and Information Technology. University of Ontario Institute of Technology, Canada.

Layman, E. (2008). Ethical issues and the electronic health record. The Health Care Manager, (27) 2. 165-167.

Sinno, M. (2011). 8 Problems surrounding meaningful use. Vice President and CIO, Cooper University Hospital, Snehal Gandhi, MD, Director of Medical Informatics, Cooper University Hospital and Molly Gamble