Natural disasters are a major threat to patient records and steps should be taken by facilities to neutralize the threat that natural disasters pose to paper records. In fact, there have been many real life scenarios where irreparable damage has been done to patient records stored in a medical facility and in turn to the lives of the patients whose records were damaged or lost. In New Orleans, after Hurricane Katrina, doctors' offices and hospitals lost patient records permanently as they were usually kept in paper files in basements or on the ground floor (Woodard, 2013). This meant that, after the hurricane, they were left soaked in the water from the storm for weeks and were unusable after that. The result of this loss of information was that patients were now being treated by doctors who had no prior knowledge of their conditions and as Albert Woodard (2013) writes in an article for the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, the doctors had no idea as to the type of cancer they were treating, what drugs the patients were allergic to and what medications the patients had been receiving. According to Trevor Sutton (2010) a similar situation had arisen in Joplin, Missouri after the Joplin tornado in 2011 as the storm had caused the records to be strewn for miles around the area. Paper medical records were found up to 75 miles away which, not only renders the records useless but also raises serious security and privacy concerns (Sutton, 2010). Fortunately, the city's St. John's Regional Medical center had already converted their patient records to electronic records and the records were all saved on a server that was very far away from the scene of the disaster (Sutton, 2010). Their patients could rest easy as their care could now be continued elsewhere by doctors who could access their records and provide them with informed care. Thus, the way to protect patient records is to convert them into electronic medical records (EMRs.) Other countries have already made this transition with America lagging behind (Woodard, 2013). Not only does EMR save records from natural disasters, other disasters like fires, explosions and floods will pose no threat to loss of records with the implementation of electronic systems. There are several other advantages to EMRs. Subscribing to an electronic system would greatly increase the ability to transfer patient data from one department to another; it will also save precious space which vast amounts of paper records take up (SERCH Report, 2012). Also, workflow and productivity will also increase as time is saved retrieving and accessing records and the number of patients served per day will greatly increase (SERCH Report, 2012). Errors will be reduced and results can be managed more effectively; operational costs that come from creating and storing physical records such as transcription services will be reduced; advanced electronic prescription and documentation services can be put into place and medical billing will be more accurate and efficient (SERCH Report, 2012). Patients can also be given access to this information through a portal (Versel, 2013). It will allow patients to keep better track of their own health and medical processes (Versel, 2013). They can access their records, get post-surgical care, view their test results and ask questions through this portal which will make them more aware of their conditions and may even make them take a more active role in their treatment (Versel, 2013).
In case of a natural disaster, there needs to be quick response to deal with health issues that a patient may face. With EMR, data can be sent to a physician who may be treating a patient who has been displaced to a different state very quickly. In these critical times, the ease and instantaneous access, through a computer or even a smart phone or tablet, a health professional can get, might make the difference between life and death for a patient.
However, as with any method of storing patient records there are some issues of privacy and security that have to be dealt with. EMR companies, when they design the systems, take great care into integrating security measures into the system. In some cases, there is less to worry about in terms of security, for example, there is no risk of files being lost or misplaced or ending up in the wrong hands if the system is designed and maintained by experienced professionals. Information systems professionals should also be trained in the proper usage of the specific system to avoid inaccuracies and data leaks. All end users, like doctors and nurses, who will be using the system should be trained in using in the system and in best practices to make sure the system is secure and private. When health care professionals outside the immediate practice ask for transfer of medical records, the information system manager should rigorously check their credentials before allowing access. Many EMR systems also store the records on multiple servers in case one of the servers is hit by a natural disaster as well. This ensures that records are even more secure and can be accessed all the time.
In response to data sharing during a disaster, a report by the Southeast Regional HIT-HIE Collaboration (SERCH Report, 2012) advises private and public organizations to follow these five recommendations. They should understand the state's disaster response policies and coordinate with the State agency designated for Emergency Support Function #8 (Public Health and Medical Services) they should develop standard protocols or procedures that are properly vetted by the staff and information security staff to share information across state lines; States have an option of the Data Use and Reciprocal Support agreement (SERCH Report, 2012) that they can use to expedite patient privacy, security, and health data-sharing concerns and organizations can enact the Mutual Aid Memorandum of Understanding which waives liability for the release of records when an emergency is declared; organizations should also have careful knowledge of their states' health information sources and electronic data sharing entities and organizations can also consider phasing in a system to establish interstate information sharing abilities. Working with these recommendations will make sure that the organization is ready in case there is a disaster and records need to be shared quickly. Thus, the work of sharing data will be divided into technical and legal areas. The technical team can work on delivering the information or creating systems that will allow access across state lines that meet the criteria that the legal team will develop after understanding all the laws and regulations that go with protecting and transferring patient information. It is important to have a complete procedure in place in case of a disaster as the report advises.
The transference of medical information to the cloud with EMR systems is a much needed innovation as is evident from the continued loss of physical records that happen every time there is a natural disaster. Not only is it a safer and more secure way of saving patient records, it makes the organization more effective and productive while saving many and making records more effective. As long as all users are trained properly in the system and patients are educated to the advantages and risks of the system, there is no reason why it cannot be operated smoothly.
References:
MICROMD (n.d), Advantages of EMR. Retrieved Nov. 15, 2013 from http://www.micromd.com/emr/advantages.html
Southeast Regional HIT-HIE Collaboration (SERCH): Final Report (2012). Prepared for: Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology & the US Department of Health and Human Services. Retrieved Nov. 15, 2013 from: http://www.healthit.gov/sites/default/files/pdf/SERCH-White-Paper.pdf
Sutton, A.Trevor (2013), Protecting Medical Records in a Disaster. N.p., 3 Nov. 2010. Retrieved Nov. 14, 2013 from: http://respiratory-care-sleep-medicine.advanceweb.com/Features/Articles/Medical-Records-in-a-Disaster.aspx
Terry, Ken (2013), Medical Practices Move Health IT To Cloud. InformationWeek. Retrieved Nov. 14, 2013 from: http://www.informationweek.com/healthcare/electronic-medical-records/medical-practices-move-health-it-to-clou/240160942
Versel, Neil, Helping Patients Stay Engaged in their Own Care (2013), U.S.News & World Report. US News. Retrieved Nov. 15, 2013 from: http://health.usnews.com/health-news/hospital-of-tomorrow/articles/2013/09/06/electronic-health-records-helping-patients-engage-in-their-own-care
Woodard, Albert (2013), Electronic Medical Records Keep Natural Disasters From Turning into Personal Health Care Disasters. Georgia Public Policy Foundation. Retrieved Nov. 14, 2013 from: http://www.georgiapolicy.org/electronic-medical-records-keep-natural-disasters-from-turning-into-personal-health-care-disasters/
