Good question.  How far can you go without violating HIPPA?  Can you use the
same form that you have a mother sign when you are going to send a report to
her physician?  I really feel that no one has a right to criticize another
LC's care unless they have talked with that LC.  Some of you may argue with
that, but I have had literally countless situations where the mother tells
me one thing, not realizing for some reason that I can go out and talk to
her nurse, or check her chart, and quickly changes her story after I
question her further. And I keep GOOD notes, because I've been criticized
myself and I've had to defend the true story of what I've done.  That's
probably why this is a topic of interest to me! :-) 

I don't know what the answer is.  How far does HIPPA go as far as rights of
health care providers to communicate?  Isn't there some leeway for health
care providers to communicate?

 

Melinda

 

 

 

 

Melissa wrote:

<quote>...I continue to encourage (actually, implore) private practice or
non-hospital LC's to CALL and get the "rest of the story" when they are
faced with so-called "train wrecks" from the hospital.

 

 

 

Melinda Lueck, RN, BSN, IBCLC

 

Toledo, Ohio  <end quote>

 

Hi Melissa,

My question (to anyone on the list) is, what about HIPAA?  (For those
outside the US health care system, HIPAA involves privacy laws and means
that health care workers cannot discuss patients outside the confines of the
worker's clinic/hospital/other work site, without the patient's written
consent.) Do private-practice LC's routinely obtain written consent to
discuss patients with the hospital?  What about WIC peer counselors?  This
is a real sticking-point in my WIC program, where peers are usually
counseling the mother over the phone and not in person.  It's complicated by
our serving non-English-speaking clients, who are more likely to want the
peer to advocate for them with other health care providers.  Could anyone
share how they deal with protecting the patient's right to privacy while
trying the help them with breastfeeding?

TIA,

Marcia McCoy, IBCLC in Minnesota

 

 


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