Electronic medical records are being integrated into the healthcare setting, allowing for the quick and easy exchange and storage of patients’ medical information. But there are risks in using this technology. Of primary concern is the potential to violate patient confidentiality.

Although your facility’s information technology team will likely set up firewalls and programming to help prevent the disclosure of sensitive information, there are precautions that individual healthcare providers can take to minimize the risk of unauthorized release of patient information.

First and foremost, be familiar with how to use your facility’s system. Attend in services periodically to be sure that you are familiar with any upgrades to the electronic charting system. Follow your facility’s policies and procedures carefully. Never share your system password with anyone, including a colleague. Many systems not only can trace who logged onto the system and accessed a certain part of the database, but when. So if someone uses your password to alter a file or leak information, you’d be suspect.

When charting, be sure that the computer screen is out of sight from passersby; the position of the screen should never face in a direction where anyone can see it. Also, when printing confidential patient information, make sure the printer is in a  ricted area. Pick up the printout immediately to prevent the information from getting into the wrong hands.

Before hitting Enter on your keyboard, read your entries carefully to make sure they’re accurate and complete. Most programs for  lectronic medical records prevent you from going back to change an entry once you hit the Enter key. If you need to make a change, you’ll have to make another entry under your login name.

Finally, be sure to log off the system after each use. Some systems are programmed to shut off automatically if the terminal is not in use for a certain period of time, but the lag time may just be long enough for someone else to use the system under your login name.