We are being coerced into an electronic medical records system, which the Government will “keep safe” for us and allow access to physicians treating patients. We are to accept the assertion that the data base will be secure and that our most private medical information will never fall into the wrong hands. Certainly the ability of a physician to have access to all medical records for a patient is of significant value, and may reduce redundant testing.
But what about others who will have access, legally, or otherwise? Even if you are not worried about “Big Brother”, are your medical records in a central data base truly safe? Are Pentagon files safe from hackers? I think you already know the answer to that. Last year, there were over 50 breaches of computer data bases by hackers. Approximately 43 million Americans had their personal information compromised in the past 12 months. One and one half million credit cards were stolen on line in the past 2 years, as well as social security numbers.
As a physician, I would love to have instant access to my patients’ records from other physicians, but I absolutely do not want that information compromised. We do not need to have all those records in a central data base. Other than requiring a patient be responsible for those records, there is no reason that all of the individual’s information cannot be recorded electronically in a small portable system, like a flash drive. The patient can take the entire record to the physician’s office for both review and to be updated. Oh, I forgot, our Government doesn’t think we, the public, can be trusted with our own medical records. The Government feels the need to be the ultimate custodian. George Orwell was off a few years, but we are approaching 1984.
Dr. Barry Jacobs is a Reproductive Endocrinologist, practicing in Carrollton, Texas, a northern suburb of Dallas. He completed his residency training in obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, and remained at that institution to become its first fellow once Baylor achieved accreditation for an advanced training program in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. Dr. Jacobs has served on the faculty of several medical schools and was director of Reproductive Endocrinology at Texas Tech Health Science Center in Amarillo. Currently, in addition to his clinical activities caring for infertile patients and those with recurrent pregnancy loss, he is Chairman of the IVF committee at Baylor Medical Center in Carrollton.
big brother, Health Care, privacy, tyranny
This post was written by:
Barry Jacobs, M.D. - who has written 15 posts on Small Business Against Big Government.
Dr. Jacobs is a native Texan, who grew up in Beaumont, 90 miles east of Houston. After graduating from the local college and he attended the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, where he received his degree as a doctor of medicine. He then spent a year in Los Angeles as a surgery intern and returned to Texas to receive specialty training in obstetrics and gynecology. His OB-GYN residency training program was interrupted when he was called to serve his country during the Viet Nam war. While stationed at a pilot training base outside of Lubbock, Texas, he saw several patients each month who complained they were having difficulty becoming pregnant. Recognizing his own poor knowledge in the area of infertility, he assumed he would gain that education when he completed his OB-GYN training. He was mistaken. At the conclusion of his OB-GYN residency, he knew no more about helping infertile couples than he did while in the Air Force. Being dissatisfied with his inadequate abilities in the realm of infertility, he spent 2 more years in a fellowship studying nothing except Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. One year of the fellowship was devoted to basic research of ovarian physiology, during which time, he and his mentor and collaborator were able to make a small but landmark contribution to the scientific and medical literature.
After completing his formal training, Dr. Jacobs has spent a number of years both as faculty at various medical schools and in private practice. Even in private practice, he remains an educator. Instead of teaching medical students and OB-GYN residents, he educates his patients as to their problems and treatment options. As part of his efforts to teach others what he knows, he has made his web page, www.texasfertility.com, as informative as he can. He derives a great deal of pleasure working with couples and trying to help them. New information and understanding of human reproduction is progressing rapidly. For that reason, Dr. Jacobs devotes a large amount of time reading the current medical literature and participating in continuing medical education seminars. His desire is to provide the best quality care for infertile patients, while trying to make them feel comfortable with the difficult and stressful processes they must endure in their efforts to become parents. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, Dr. Jacobs currently serves as chairman of the IVF Committee at Baylor Medical Center in Carrollton, Texas.
February 19th, 2010 at 5:12 pm
You’re right, central database is NOT safe
December 11th, 2010 at 9:39 am
A mandated central data base containing every American’s medical records is only 1 of the BAD ideas in Obamacare. I invite you to read a previous post on this site describing an alternative market based health care reform. If you agree with the discussion, please contact your Congressman and Senator and advocate for it