New Dartmouth Institute Analysis Looks at Laws on Patient Recording of Clinical Encounters
Traffic stops, office conversations, and even doctor’s visits—more and more people today are choosing to record life’s encounters. If you are doctor, there is a good chance that at least one of your last 10 patients recorded their visit—either with or without permission. This “new reality” has some doctors and health care clinics worried about the ownership of recordings and their potential to be used in complaints or even law suits. Patients also worry that recording a doctor’s visit might be illegal, especially if done covertly.
What exactly are the laws governing patient recordings? In an article recently published in the Journal of the American Medicial Association (JAMA), investigators on The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice’s Open Recordings Project explain the often-confusing laws around recordings clinical visits.
“In the U.S., the situation is complex,” said Dartmouth Institute Professor Glyn Elwyn, MD. “Wiretapping or eavesdropping statutes provide the primary legal framework guiding recording practices and protecting privacy, so a patient who would like to record a doctor’s visit should familiarize themselves with laws in their state.”
For the full JAMA article: http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2643728
Related: Stat First Opinion by Tim Lahey and Glyn Elwyn: https://www.statnews.com/2017/07/10/record-doctors-office-patient-visit/
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