[Med-privacy] med-privacy & Chatty Cathy

[pmarshall]

The Washington Times
www.washingtontimes.com <http://www.washingtontimes.com>

------------------------------------------------------------------------


    Indiscretions infecting patient privacy
    <http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20040610-112610-5740r.htm>

By Jennifer Harper
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Published June 11, 2004
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paging Dr. Discretion.
    A study finds patient privacy is seriously threatened by chatty=20
receptionists, nurses, doctors and other health care workers who=20
casually discuss the details of patient cases in hospital halls, waiting =

rooms, lobbies and cafeterias.
    Water-cooler commentary about lab results, office procedures or=20
other sensitive medical details are more than just bad manners; they=20
constitute a serious breach of confidentiality, say researchers at=20
Purdue University and West Virginia University.
    The researchers said small talk can subject already troubled=20
patients to identity theft, discrimination or social stigma.
    "The country has recently invested a tremendous amount of resources=20
in the nation's largest set of federal privacy laws to prevent health=20
care providers from divulging or selling patient information," said=20
Marifran Mattson, a health communications analyst at Purdue.
    "But we found that daily conversations of physicians, nurses,=20
hospital staff and technicians can jeopardize the same kind of=20
information," she said.
    New patient privacy rules contained in the Health Insurance=20
Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) went into effect in April=20
2003 to limit access to sensitive information. The act has caused much=20
hubbub in the medical world as hospitals and practitioners scramble to=20
comply with the new regulations in all their permutations.
    According to the Health and Human Services Department, HIPAA=20
requires doctors, pharmacies, health plans and medical facilities to=20
heed patient requests to keep their personal information confidential.=20
Among other things, employees must be trained in "privacy procedures,"=20
the agency said, and offices must have a designated "privacy officer."
    But folks still talk, and the damage continues, the researchers found=
=2E
    "Confidentiality breaches are occurring daily," said Maria Brann, a=20
communication professor at West Virginia University who monitored=20
hospital hallways, elevators and other well-traveled spots for evidence=20
that personal medical information was the topic du jour.
    She found plenty: hospital employees who talked over medical cases=20
with one another within earshot of strangers, receptionists who used=20
speakerphones when consulting with insurance companies, indiscreet=20
mention of Social Security numbers or medical tests in a waiting room.
    "While health care providers may not be malicious in their=20
disclosures, they are still sharing patients' most personal information=20
with unauthorized individuals," Miss Brann said.
    She also interviewed 51 patients about their privacy concerns to=20
find that blabby health care workers also exact an emotional toll.
    "The most serious concern is that people will find out about a loved =

one's health problems from someone other than their health care=20
provider," said Purdue's Miss Mattson, adding that patients who think=20
their privacy is at stake "may be less likely to share important details =

with their physicians or nurses."
    The providers themselves have been struggling with the nuances of=20
HIPAA in the past year.
    For example, Amednews, a publication of the American Medical=20
Association, offered a primer that suggested preferred ways for medical=20
receptionists to call out patients' names in a waiting room, where to=20
discuss lab results and whether it was proper to leave medical details=20
on a patient's answering machine.
    "A code of silence is not necessary, but discretion is," the primer=20
advises.
    Since HIPAA went into effect, HHS has issued multiple guidelines to=20
help health providers get their bearings.
    "HIPAA does not cut off all communications between providers and the =

families and friends of patients," Richard Campanelli, director of the=20
HHS Office for Civil Rights, said in an open letter to the nation's=20
physicians last month.
    Information can be shared with anyone "a patient identifies as=20
involved in his or her care -- as long as the patient does not object,"=20
Mr. Campanelli said.
    HHS guidelines, in fact, go into excruciating detail. A doctor, for=20
example, could in good conscience "give information about a patient's=20
mobility limitations to a friend driving the patient home from the=20
hospital," according to one scenario.
    The two researchers, who published their findings this month in the=20
Journal of Health Communication, urge health care providers to be=20
vigilant and "teach privacy awareness and skills" in the meantime.
    Doctors, nurses and other staffers "need to pay attention to how=20
they personally breach confidentiality laws," said Miss Mattson, who=20
also advises concerned patients to speak up.
    "When you overhear a phone conversation in a waiting room where the=20
receptionist is repeating personal information such as Social Security=20
numbers, gently remind that person or supervisor that you are=20
concerned," Miss Mattson said.
  =20
Copyright =A9 2004 News World Communications, Inc.=20
------------------------------------------------------------------------
<http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20040610-112610-5740r.htm>