Friday, March 03, 2006

Trust Yourself

This question was forwarded to me the other day:

Any thoughts on this issue?
We're having a bit of confusion in our department. One supervisor says it's not against HIPAA for the MTs to transcribe their own reports or their non-adult child's reports (just not spouse or other extended family members). Other supervisor says it's a direct violation and a terminable offense. Can anybody please verify or clarify this for me, point me in the right direction, provide some concise documentation? Greatly appreciated!


The PHI belongs to the patient and it is never a violation for the patient to view, disclose, or use their own PHI. In the case of a non-adult child, as long as the parent is the child’s representative, the same would apply. Possible exceptions would be mental health notes taken by a therapist or analyst, which belong to the note-taker, or cases where the physician or a court have reason to believe the child is at risk from the parent, or where the parent has waived the right to be the child’s representative, once again usually in mental health situations.

Do you have similar questions? Send 'em in. I'll do my best to answer right away!

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