Question

Describe the privacy risks for electronic health records

Answer 1

Electronic Health Records (EHR) are the electrically maintained records,mainly through computers, that encompasses the medical files of patients that includes the patient data, treatment and associated details.This has proven to be more accessible information with clarity compared to the written records which may be analyzed at any point of time.

However, there may be some privacy risks for these records which are described below:

a) The medical record of a patient is a sensitive record as it contains information about the patient's physical and mental conditions and prescription.Therefore, it is a patient's privacy and should be known only to the professionals handling the case.In case of these data, since they are digitally maintained there are high risks of hacking by unauthorized , third party which may affect the patient's confidentiality.

b)An other concern is the filing of the patient information at a different location, may be with an other patient's record.This can alter the treatment options in future and can affect the patient advesrsely.Therefore, such errors should be minimized to ensure proper patient care.

c) Due to these reasons the patient may also be reluctant initially in giving out their complete history as it is shared via the internet that will affect the treatment regimen and also the finances that is received through insurances.