A hospital is planning to convert to an electronic health record (EHR) system. Which action by administration would best address both legal and ethical issues related to EHRs?
a. Create consent forms that acknowledge the use of EHRs.
b. Develop policies and procedures related to patient privacy.
c. Hold public meetings to describe use of the EHR system.
d. Train the nursing staff on proper use of the EHR system.
B
Privacy is paramount to using an EHR. Federal privacy laws established under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) require the development of privacy rules for technologies that use electronic data exchange.
Merely acknowledging the use of the EHR system would not really address legal and ethical concerns.
Public meetings might create goodwill but would not really address legal and ethical concerns with the use of electronic records.
Training those who use the EHR is an important component of its proper use, but this does not go far enough in addressing ethical and legal issues.
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