Electronic Medical Record

Electronic Medical Record (EMR) is a computerized system designed for storing medical records. It is an electronic version of paper- based medical record for individual that is specific to one facility, or physician. The medical record is a very powerful tool that allows physician to track the patient's medical history and identify problems or patterns that may help determine the course of health care. Doctors can also deliver specific test results in comprehensible formats to their patients using graph and charts in detailed description of patients' health status and treatment decisions fast and accurately.

EMR can minimize errors in medical records caused by human errors such as misspelling and differing in terminologies. It can also keep the records safe when paper records can be lost easily and lost forever due to fire, floods and other catastrophes and disasters. It is a definitely cost effective compared to paper based records. EMR is only a click away and it can be accessed anytime globally, saves storage space and especially environmentally friendly.

Technology over the years has dramatically impacted the way we use and handle information. Any paper-based information are now being converted to electronic format and stored in a central location for easy access. An EMR system implementation would significantly reduce clinician workload and medical errors which will also save the US healthcare system major expense. Meanwhile, patient's medical records have to be more secure in order to switch from paper system to EMR system. Hospitals and medical offices has a huge responsibility to make sure that Information Data security is in compliance with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), etc. while transition from paper system to EMR. Privacy is a big concern for doctors and patients and it can be a major road block during this transition.

People are concerned about data security, privacy and protection of electronic data that sored in EMRs. Most people are in doubt that their data are safe from those who can intentionally or unintentionally abuse the system. There are many cases reported where password and data encryptions are not effective in protecting data from being stolen. Also hackers can steal sensitive data and steal their identity for numerous reasons which is common in this digital world. High security databases as well as government databases are often compromised. Even though the EMR software is in compliance with all HIPAA , HHS, etc, there are some incidents that scare the patients to worry about their personal security. It is an ongoing challenge to keep this information safe. Both parties have a huge responsibility to keep their information safe by practicing safe computing such as regular password changes, encryption, device Case study 1

March 30, 2012, Department of Technology Services (DTS) experienced a data breach on their servers that stores Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) claims data. It was announced by Utah's Department of Health (UDOH). The breach was discovered on Monday, April 2nd, after the hackers started downloading data from the server. DTS shut down the server immediately in responding to the breaching incident. The DTS said that the information on the server included claims payment and eligibility inquiries. This could include sensitive, personal health information from individuals and health care providers such as Social Security numbers, names, dates of birth, addresses, diagnosis codes, national provider identification numbers, provider taxpayer identification numbers, and billing codes. The stolen information includes 24,000 Medicaid related files.(Charette) According to an AP story, a DTS spokesperson said: "Although the state has multiple layers of security on every server, a technician installed a password that wasn't as secure as needed."

Case study 2

A medical data breach exposed data for 20,000 emergency room patients at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. The compromised patient's data were published on a commercial website for more than a year, including names and diagnoses. A Source breach was from one of the hospital's vendor partners, billing contractor. The leaked information did not include patient Social Security numbers, birth dates or credit card numbers, but it was exposed on a Web site called Student of Fortune, a website that sells students help for their schoolwork. Information on the spreadsheet included names, diagnosis codes, and account numbers, billing charges