Privacy Rule In Health Administration

HIPPA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) was put in place by the Federal Government for several reasons; better portability of health insurance for employees, to prevent fraud and abuse within the healthcare delivery system, and simplification of administrative functions associated with healthcare delivery (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2012). Due to sensitive healthcare information being shared federal regulations were also put into place, resulting in the “Privacy Rule” and “Security Rule”. The Privacy Rule limits the use and disclosure of patient information. The Security Rule protects the patients’ healthcare information from improper use or disclosure, to maintain information integrity, and ensure its availability (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2012). Both regulations apply to protected health information (PHI) which is any form of health information that can be used to identify an individual patient. Practitioners who refer to HIPPA are not referring to the act itself but the “Privacy Rule” and “Security Rule” (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2012). It is extremely important to understand these concepts as a student in the clinical setting and how each hospital enforces these concepts. Before starting at any clinical site there is an extensive orientation about HIPPA regarding what is appropriate and not appropriate when it comes to patient information and the repercussions of violating HIPPA. In this paper I will discuss Akron General’s rules and policies regarding their EHR, PHI, EPHI, and social media.
As a current student at Akron General Medical Center we are allowed access to their EHR, McKesson. However, before logging into their system or even stepping foot on the floor the importance of patient information and keeping it c...

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...right to demand the information be removed if the posting could harm the reputation of Akron General or its patients and employees. Anyone that violates HIPAA may be subject to fines and penalties, including jail time, depending upon the intent of the violation.
As a nursing student we have discussed instances where HIPAA has been violated within the hospital setting but I personally have not seen any HIPAA violations in my experiences on campus or in clinical. The HIPPA Privacy and Security rule play major parts in everyday practice. It is important to understand all of these aspects in order to protect the patients’ privacy and to keep their information confidential. Violating any federal regulations can lead to serious consequences and is also another important reason to understand HIPPA, the privacy rule, and security rule before entering any healthcare setting.