A word about confidentiality...

Something came up this week that has hit really close to home with me.  That is patient confidentiality.  I cannot stress enough how important this is.  Someone that I was close to non-chalantly made a comment to me about a recent doctor visit that I'd had.  The problem was I had never told this person about the appointment.  When I asked how they knew about it, they began to back pedal and change the story.    That hurt me on a number of levels.  First, my trust in that office has now been broken.  That is probably the biggest thing for me.  I no longer know if they have my best interests at heart.  Second, it is actually a violation of federal law to divulge something.  Even anything as casual as "how did your appointment go" can get you into some serious trouble.  Now, I don't know what this person knows and what they don't know, or who else knows it.  Even though, by the world's standards, there's nothing that will make the cover of the NYT, it is personal and private to me and I would like to keep it that way.

So, please remember, above all else, if you ever see a name that you recognize, you cannot divulge anything in any way.  Don't go home and mention it to your spouse, tell your kids, blog about it, or yell it from the rooftops.  Whatever you see, stays in the office.  Or, to paraphrase the Vegas commercials:  What happens at work, stays at work.

Until next time,

Thanks,
Lori

http://www.sinclairinkspot.com/
Loretta Sinclair
Author, Medical Billing, Coding and Reimbursement
How to Run Your Own Home Medical Billing Service
Annotation Press, 2007, 2008
Available in print and on Kindle

Marketing Your Medical Billing Service
Sinclair Publications, 2011
available in ebook format only
See http://www.amazon.com/, http://www.barnesandnoble.com/, or http://www.sinclairinkspot.com.market/

Medical Billing, Coding, and Reimbursement
Supplemental Workbook
Sinclair Publications
copyright 2009