There has been much talk about patient privacy and the benefits which it has in recent years as more healthcare bills are put forward that could jeopardize the most important pillar of medicine. Thankfully, few of these bills ever make it beyond the ideas stage on and the other side of things, we have many software developers who are seeking for new ways of using technology to ensure that the details of a patient, their life and their medical history stay where they should, confidentially locked away. If you are were in any doubt as to the importance of patient privacy, here is exactly why it is so important.
Unbiased Treatment
We are all humans and nobody is devoid of emotion, not even doctors. With this in mind then, it is vital that when a doctor or nurse is treating a patient, that they have absolutely no bias to their patient one way or another. Having open access to the information about who a patient is, what they do for a living and what their history is, could easily sway a doctor or nurse’s attitude towards the patient. This is not to say that they won’t receive the medical help that they need, but it could affect the standard of their care.
Data Protection
Data protection is big business an it is vital that we cut out any opportunity for people to steal the identification of someone else. With this in mind, patients should most definitely be protected in this regard. Let’s assume that someone has access to patient records and that patient should pass away, it may not be long before an unscrupulous person has their hands on a passport with their photos, and the dead patient’s details.
Personal Feelings
Ultimately the idea that all of your information is available to just about anyone can make you feel hurt and slightly betrayed. This is something that nobody should feel, let alone a patient in a hospital and for this reason, patient[s’ private details should always be kept secure.
Stigmatization
Unfortunately we live in a world where there is still much stigma attached to some diseases and that can mean that a patient could be made to feel uncomfortable because of a particular condition or disease which they may have. The simple answer to avoiding this stigmatization is to ensure that patient’s details are kept under lock and key.
Creating Trust
As a health care system, there must be trust between our patients and our professional and one surefire way of doing that is by ensuring that any details that the hospital or health care center receives about a patient, are kept confidential. Indeed the health care system would not work as well as it does without this trust and everyone should do all that they can to ensure that this trust is kept.