Case Study-HIPAA

Case Study-HIPAA

Healthcare practitioners need to understand the laws and regulations surrounding patient confidentiality. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects patients’ medical information privacy. It also sets the standards for how this information can be used, disclosed, and protected (De Simone, 2019). Under HIPAA, healthcare practitioners are only legally allowed to view a patient’s medical information if they have a legitimate reason for doing so. For instance, there is a need to provide care or treatment to the patient or if the patient has permission through a signed HIPAA Release of Information form. In this case, you are legally allowed to view the patient’s contact information as the patient has signed the form. Do you need help with your assignment ? Reach out to us at eminencepapers.com.

It is important to reach out to the patient using contact information from their file. By doing this, the patient will receive the missing paperwork and instructions while maintaining HIPAA patient confidentiality. (Moore & Frye, 2019). A secure and confidential method of communication should be used to ensure that the patient’s information is corrected. You could also provide the documents in person to the patient or have them pick up the documents from the office. Only the patient or someone authorized by the patient, such as a family member, can access the information.

To maintain patient confidentiality, a medical office reception or waiting area does the following: limiting access to patient information to the patient or those authorized by the patient. It also keeps patient information in locked cabinets or secure computer systems (Tan & Rao, 2019). Another way of maintaining confidentiality is training medical office employees on the importance of patient privacy and HIPAA laws.

A breach of confidentiality can result in serious consequences for a healthcare practitioner. This includes but is not limited to heavy financial penalties, loss of practice license, and damage to the professional’s reputation. It can also harm the patient’s trust in the healthcare system. Furthermore, it may potentially cause harm to the patient if their sensitive information is disclosed to others without their consent.

There are two exceptions to confidentiality in healthcare settings: mandatory reporting and public health emergencies. Mandatory reporting requires healthcare professionals to report certain conditions, such as abuse or neglect, to the relevant authorities. Public health emergencies may also require healthcare professionals to disclose information to prevent or control the spread of disease (Hulkower, Penn, & Schmit, 2020). In these cases, HIPAA regulations allow for limited disclosure of patient information to protect public health.

References

De Simone, D. M. (2019). When is accessing medical records a HIPAA breach? Journal of Nursing Regulation, 10(3), 34-36. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2155-8256(19)30146-2

Hulkower, R., Penn, M., & Schmit, C. (2020). Privacy and confidentiality of public health information. Public Health Informatics and Information Systems, 147-166. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-41215-9_9

Moore, W., & Frye, S. (2019). Review of HIPAA, Part 1: history, protected health information, and privacy and security rules. Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology, 47(4), 269-272. https://doi.org/10.2967/jnmt.119.227819

Tan, G., & Rao, S. S. (2019). Part I: How to ergonomically design a modern endoscopic suite. Techniques in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, 21(3), 133-139. https://doi.org/10.1016/

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Case Study:

A patient has just left the office after having an outpatient surgery procedure. As you get ready to put away the patient’s file, you realize that the patient has forgotten to take his prescriptions and after-care instruction sheets home with him. It is vital for proper healing and recovery for the patient to have these documents. You know you will have to contact this patient so you look inside for his contact information and sign the HIPAA Release of Information form.

Case Study-HIPAA

Questions to answer:

Under HIPAA, are you legally allowed to view this patient’s medical information? Why or why not?
In this case, how would you be able to correct your error and provide the missing documents and instructions to the patient while still protecting patient confidentiality under HIPAA?
List 3 ways patient confidentiality is maintained in the reception/waiting area of a medical office.
What consequences can a breach of confidentiality have for a healthcare professional?
Identify and explain two exceptions to confidentiality in healthcare settings.