Health Ministry Moving Towards Electronic Storage of Patients’ Records

The Ministry of Health will be moving towards the electronic storage of patients’ health records this year.

This was disclosed by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry, Sancia Bennett Templer, at the recent launch of the trafficking in persons Standard Operating Procedures for health officials at the Ministry of Justice on Constant Spring Road, St. Andrew.

She was responding to a question about the confidentiality of health records, particularly of children, who are victims of sexual abuse.

Mrs. Bennett Templer pointed out that electronic health records can preserve the confidentiality and security of patient data.

“I think this is a very important direction in which to move. You could then have protocols with respect to access to files, which would then be controlled by particular codes, and so on, that persons would have to utilise to be able to gain access to certain types of records,” she said.

The Standard Operating Procedures titled ‘Management of Suspected Victims of Trafficking in Persons Protocol for Health Workers’ contains pertinent information concerning the identification and protection of victims of human trafficking.

It provides guidelines relating to the stabilisation of patients, importance of confidentiality, requisite documentation, consent and referral of suspected victims.