This beginning story doesn’t make sense. Seek health care. Denied health care unless you consent to being recorded. How is that legal? Do they get around it on a technicality because a lisp isn’t a life threatening condition? HIPAA doesn’t read like that, so how is this legal?

By virtue of the fact that no one but this patient has read the consent in full before signing so no one has sued yet?

As for sharing chart info within healthcare for continuity of care, that’s allowed by HIPAA. Go to your PCP, do some things, need a specialist, go to the specialist, they’re opening your same chart file, specialist runs more tests and tries some things but then says surgery, go to a hospital, surgeon, nurses, and other relevant staff open your chart file and it’s all there. Seamless continuity, with no delay of care due to lack of info. I think that’s beautiful. Mental health is locked in a box within that chart and needs extra auth to access, so if you’re going for a gastric bypass, no one is reading about your prior inpatient stay for depression and suicidal thoughts, for example, unless you address it during this encounter.

Meds? Pharmacy feed already in the chart. This is a huge delay of care otherwise. You’d be shocked and appalled how many people have no idea what meds they take. None. Or if they do they are clueless on the dosage.

And how much Lisinopril are you taking? You know, I’m not sure? I take it every morning and night though. Wait, that’s the other one, for my heart. The hydro-leen. Sir, there’s no heart med named hydro-leen.. Well that’s what I take.

This is common.