New Twist on the Risk/Benefit Balance for PHI

Any frequent visitor to this site knows that I have some strong opinions regarding privacy of medical records. Primary among those opinions is that while there are certainly risks inherent it the move to digital records, in an instant they can be broadcast worldwide, something that won’t easily happen with paper records, there are also a number of benefits. Unfortunately, virtually all articles in the press focus on the risks giving little attention to the benefits.

Imagine my surprise when I came across an article in the UK newspaper, The Times, that focuses on the benefits of electronic medical records and more importantly, the value to the consumer to be able to access, view and comment upon their personal heath information (PHI). The system being used is the UK’s NHS PHR initiative, HealthSpace, which appears to be a relatively modest effort today, relying primarily on consumer entered data, with some limited trials that are more broader in scope, such as the one outlined in this article

Well worth the read. Now if I could also find similar reporting here in the States.