Guidelines for health custodians for electronic communications released

The Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner has released guidelines for health care custodians to ensure the safety of communicating electronically, in particular through email.

Under the Health Information Act (HIA) Custodians have a duty to protect the privacy of patients and the confidentiality of health information. The guidelines are designed to outline measures that should be taken if health information is being transmitted via email.

Information and Privacy Commissioner Jill Clayton says the guidelines outline the risks that are involved in electronic communication and they also offer tips to minimize the risk. “The bottom line is that health care custodians need to assess the risks and limit or encrypt the information being sent. Sensitive health information should be encrypted so if it is misdirected or intercepted, the information can’t be accessed.”

The guidelines are available at www.oipc.ab.ca