Increasing amounts of health information are being collected and stored electronically as a result of the rising adoption of electronic health records in hospitals and medical practices. There is a significant demand for this information among academic and commercial researchers, public health agencies, government agencies, insurers and marketers. Many types of secondary use of data are quite legitimate including use to track chronic disease trends or to analyze drug utilization. However, we have a responsibility to protect the privacy of confidential information. Breaches are on the increase with extortion attempts by traffickers of illegally accessed information. How do we maintain patient trust in Electronic Health Records and the healthcare system in general as information becomes more available?
This is a complex subject and one that requires the input of experts. I talked with Khaled El Emam, Canada Research Chair in Electronic Health Information at the University of Ottawa. More extensive information is available through ehealthinformation.ca.
What are your thoughts? Is it possible to protect confidential information? Are we on a road towards a bright new future in terms of research and treatments? Are we establishing dangerous precedents? To add your thoughts or comments, click on the 'Comments' link
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