Is This the End of Private Practice?
Some of you are seeing the sea changes occurring with the transition to national health care. Patients are expecting that you will accept a small copay while their insurance company coordinates their care and their records are switched to a digital format. Many providers are concerned about the ability to maintain privacy and confidentiality in this new environment. While we are being told that records will be secure, we are also being encouraged to release records to the primary care physician's office, to other providers and to the great digital unknown. Many of us don't have confidence in these systems, as daily, we hear about "breaches" in records systems. Even, as providers, much of our own provider data, has been breached.
How should we conduct our practices to assure our patients are protected from disclosure, embarrassment and perhaps career issues? On these pages we will be looking at the related factors, hearing from each of you about your experiences and concerns. We will also examine the factors which assure a free, successful and comfortable private practice for all of you. Stay tuned.....