Understanding Your Health Record/Information
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Your Rights | Our Responsibilities | For More Information | Disclosure Examples | To File a Complaint
Each time you visit a hospital, physician, or other healthcare provider, a
record of your
visit is made. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, examination and
test
results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This
information,
often referred to as your health or medical record, serves as a:
- basis for planning your care and treatment
- means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute
to your care
- legal document describing the care you received
- means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed
were
actually provided
- a tool in educating heath professionals
- a source of data for medical research
- a source of information for public health officials charged with improving
the
health of the nation
- a source of data for facility planning and marketing
- a tool with which we can assess and continually work to improve the care
we
render and the outcomes we achieve
Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used
helps you to:
- ensure its accuracy
- better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your
health information
- make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others
Your Health Information Rights
Although your health record is the physical property of the healthcare
practitioner or
facility that compiled it, the information belongs to you. You have the right
to:
- request a restriction on certain uses and disclosures of your information as
provided by 45 CFR 164.522
- obtain a paper copy of the notice of information practices upon request
- inspect and obtain a copy of your health record as provided for in 45 CFR
164.524
- amend your health record as provided in 45 CFR 164.528
- obtain an accounting of disclosures of your health information as provided in
45
CFR 164.528
- request communications of your health information by alternative means or at
alternative locations
- revoke your authorization to use or disclose health information except to the
extent that action has already been taken
Our Responsibilities
This organization is required to:
- maintain the privacy of your health information
-
provide you with a notice as to our legal duties and privacy practices with
respect
to information we collect and maintain about you
-
abide by the terms of this notice
-
notify you if we are unable to agree to a requested restriction
-
accommodate reasonable requests you may have to communicate health
information by alternative means or at alternative locations.
We reserve the right to change our practices and to make the new provisions
effective
for all protected health information we maintain. Should our information
practices
change, we will mail a revised notice to the address you’ve supplied us.
We will not use or disclose your health information without your authorization,
except
as described in this notice.
For More Information or to Report a Problem
If have questions and would like additional information, you may contact the
Medical
Records Department at 510-437-4466.
If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you can file a complaint
with the
Compliance/Privacy Manager at 1-866-267-7764 or with the Office of Civil Rights.
There will be no retaliation for filing a complaint.
Examples of Disclosures for Treatment, Payment and Health Operations
We will use your health information for treatment.
For example: Information obtained by a nurse, physician, or other member of your
healthcare team will be recorded in your record and used to determine the course
of
treatment that should work best for you. Your physician will document in your
record
his or her expectations of the members of your healthcare team. Members of your
healthcare team will then record the actions they took and their observations.
In that
way, the physician will know how you are responding to treatment.
We will also provide your physician or a subsequent healthcare provider with
copies of
various reports that should assist him or her in treating you once you’re
discharged
from this hospital.
We will use your health information for payment.
For example: A bill may be sent to you or a third-party payer. The information
on or
accompanying the bill may include information that identifies you, as well as
your
diagnosis, procedures, and supplies used.
We will use your health information for regular health operations.
For example: Members of the medical staff, the risk or quality improvement
manager,
or members of the quality improvement team may use information in your health
record to assess the care and outcomes in your case and others like it. This
information
will then be used in an effort to continually improve the quality and
effectiveness of the
healthcare and service we provide.
Business associates: There are some services provided in our organization
through
contacts with business associates. Examples include physician services in the
emergency
department and radiology, certain laboratory tests, and a copy service we use
when
making copies of your health record. When these services are contracted, we may
disclose your health information to our business associate so that they can
perform the
job we’ve asked them to do and bill you or your third-party payer for services
rendered.
To protect your health information, however, we require the business associate
to
appropriately safeguard your information.
Directory: Unless you notify us that you object, we will use your name, location
in the
facility, general condition, and religious affiliation for directory purposes.
This
information may be provided to members of the clergy and, except for religious
affiliation, to other people who ask for you by name.
Notification: We may use or disclose information to notify or assist in
notifying a family
member, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care,
your
location, and general condition.
Communication with family: Health professionals, using their best judgement, may
disclose to a family member, other relative, close personal friend or any other
person
you identify, health information relevant to that person’s involvement in your
care or
payment related to your care.
Research: We may disclose information to researchers when their research has
been
approved by an institutional review board that has reviewed the research
proposal and
established protocols to ensure the privacy of your health information.
Funeral directors: We may disclose health information to funeral directors
consistent
with applicable law to carry out their duties.
Organ procurement organizations: Consistent with applicable law, we may disclose
health information to organ procurement organizations or other entities engaged
in the
procurement, banking, or transplantation of organs for the purpose of tissue
donation
and transplant.
Marketing: We may contact you to provide appointment reminders or information
about
treatment alternatives or other health-related benefits and services that may be
of
interest to you.
Fund raising: We may contact you as part of a fund-raising effort.
Food and Drug Administration (FDA): We may disclose to the FDA health
information
relative to adverse events with respect to food, supplements, product and
product
defects, or post marketing surveillance information to enable product recalls,
repairs, or
replacement.
Workers compensation: We may disclose health information to the extent
authorized by
and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers compensation
or
other similar programs established by law.
Public health: As required by law, we may disclose your health information to
public
health or legal authorities charged with preventing or controlling disease,
injury, or
disability.
Correctional institution: Should you be an inmate of a correctional institution,
we may
disclose to the institution or agents thereof health information necessary for
your health
and the health and safety of other individuals.
Law enforcement: We may disclose health information for law enforcement purposes
as
required by law or in response to a valid subpoena.
Health Oversight: Federal law makes provision for your health information to be
released to an appropriate health oversight agency, public health authority or
attorney,
provided that a work force member or business associate believes in good faith
that we
have engaged in unlawful conduct or have otherwise violated professional or
clinical
standards and are potentially endangering one or more patients, workers or the
public.
To File a Complaint:
If you wish to file a complaint about a violation of the
HIPAA
Privacy Rule you may contact any of the following:
Alameda County Medical Center
Office of Compliance/Privacy
1411 E. 31st St.
Oakland, CA 94602
1-866-267-7764 (Toll Free)
Alameda County Medical Center
Patient Affairs Officer
1411 E. 31st Street –E3
Oakland, CA 94602
510-437-4108
Region IX, Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
50 United Nations Plaza, Room 322
San Francisco, CA 94102
415-437-8310
415-437-8311 (TDD)
415-437-8329 FAX
Effective Date: April 14, 2003
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