Should We Be Able To Access Our Health Information Online?

     As a class we had a debate on whether clients/patients should have online access to their personal health information. I was on the ‘con’ side of this debate. After hearing both sides and their arguments, I am still unsure whether I agree or disagree with this topic. In Confidentiality and Privacy-Personal Health Information (2009), “the legislation recognizes that personal health information belongs to clients and is simply being housed in health care facilities” (Canadian Nurses Association, p.6). This is a quote that the ‘pro’ side used to back up their opinions. Allowing clients access to health information will aid them in making informed decisions about their health. The ‘pro’ side also emphasized that this will promote patients in being partners with health professionals when it comes to their care. I somewhat disagree with this statement. I believe that once patients are able to access their own health information from home, this will limit their dependency on health professionals and diminish the amount of person-to-person contact. In Canadian Fundamentals of Nursing, Potter and Perry (2010) state how “establishing presence with a client enhances your ability to learn form the client, which enhances nursing care” (p.271). Once this is gone, nursing will change, and patients may no longer feel the need to visit their health professionals. Some more points to back up the ‘con’ side is the inequality that may arise due to the fact that some people do not have access to computers or the literacy skills. Doctors also use more complex words that may confuse patients and arise worry. There is always a risk of hackers accessing personal information when using online-based technology. Lastly, according to the CNO (2009), there is “possible grounds for refusing access, including that it may present a risk of serious harm to the treatment or recovery of the client” (p.6). With this in mind, there is also certain information such as someone’s mental health, where if patients were to see this, it could add on anxiety. Having to sort out this type of information and deciding what to post online takes up valuable time. In order for myself to choose a side on this topic, I would need a physical representation of what this online health record looks like. My first thought on this topic was, is this site reliable? Will clients need to use passwords to login? Or would I type in my health card number?  

What do you think? Which side of this debate would you agree with? Leave a comment and let me know! 

     I came across this image on Google, which then led me to a Toronto Digital Journal website. The reason why I want to share this image onto my blog is because it visually displays a representation of Canadian consumers and their stance on whether patients should have full access, limited access or no access to their electronic medical records. From this data, I can see that 50% of these consumers would switch physicians in order to gain access to their records. Also, majority of these consumers (76%) believe they should have full online access to their health information. 

Here's the full link http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/1499487

References

College of Nurses of Ontario. (2009). Confidentiality and Privacy-Personal Health Information.   

   Retrieved from http://www.cno.org/Global/docs/prac/41069_privacy.pdf

Perry, A. (2010). Caring in Nursing Practice. In P.A. Potter, A. G. Perry, J. C. Ross-Kerr & M.J. 

   Wood. Canadian Fundamentals of Nursing. (pp. 265 – 275) (4^th ed. Revised). Toronto: CAN, 

   Elsevier Canada.