You are the health information manager at General Hospital. Your in-house counsel has been contacted by an attorney for a former patient of the hospital whose inpatient hospitalization resulted in some harm to the patient. That harm was documented in an incident report prepared by hospital staff. Internal legal review of the incident report indicates that the harm described by the patient’s attorney is consistent with the harm described in the incident report. Based on the conversations between General Hospital counsel and the patient’s attorney, the counsel believes a lawsuit is imminent.
- First, discuss which source(s) of law might govern this scenario and give an example of one source of law that would be applicable.
- Secondly, discuss which part of the legal process of a lawsuit you would be involved with as the health information manager.
- Lastly, what content can and/or cannot be released to the patient’s attorney and what legislation may govern this process and content release?
Expert Solution Preview
Introduction: The following are my answers to the questions posed in the content provided. As a medical professor, I am familiar with the legal aspects of healthcare and the role of health information managers in handling legal matters.
1. One source of law that may apply to this scenario is tort law. Tort law deals with civil wrongs committed by one party against another, resulting in harm or injury. In this scenario, the harm caused to the patient during the hospitalization may fall under tort law. For example, if the harm was caused by negligence on the part of the hospital staff, the patient may be able to sue for damages under tort law.
2. As the health information manager, I would be involved in the discovery process of the lawsuit. This process involves gathering and disclosing relevant information and evidence related to the case. I would be responsible for retrieving and providing the patient’s medical records to the hospital’s legal team in response to a subpoena or request for production of documents.
3. The content that can be released to the patient’s attorney may be governed by state and federal laws, including HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) and state privacy laws. As a general rule, only the minimum necessary information should be disclosed to the patient’s attorney to fulfill the legal requirements. Personal identifying information should be redacted or removed when possible to protect the privacy of the patient. Additionally, any privileged information, such as communications between the hospital and its legal counsel, should not be released without a court order or proper authorization.
