Kate,

The acronym is HIPAA and it stands for Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.  Basically, the purpose is to protect the consumer's right (in the USA) to maintain health coverage when a job is lost and also to protect the privacy of patient's medical records.  It includes many aspects and most hospitals have intitiated programs to get all of their employees up to speed on HIPAA regs.  For instance, information on patients is strictly on a need-to-know basis.  Computer access may be limited depending on your job description.  Release of information is tightly prescribed.  In a bizarre twist (IMHO), we can be fired if we look up the results of anyone with our same last name (ourselves or relatives) unless we can prove that there was a need to know pursuant to our job function.(BTW, I work in the lab).  In laymans terms, it means that we should not be looking at patient information unless it is necessary in order to perform our job and prohibits us from discussing patient findings with anyone without the permission of the patient.

There is a website you can visit for more information:  http://www.cms.hhs.gov/hipaa/hipaa1/default.asp

As with many government programs, while the intent may be fine, the execution is another thing entirely.
Warmly,
Sharon Knorr, BSMT, ASCP, IBCLC
Newark, NY (near Rochester on Lake Ontario)
mailto:[log in to unmask]

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