A proper introduction ...

I realized at 3:00 a.m. this morning that I did not properly introduce myself or my intention for this blog.

My name is Dorian and I have a very personal interest in privacy issues, especially as they relate to medical care. I worked as a Medical Billing Manager for years. I reported what I believed was an inappropriate billing action by a colleague. 2 months later, the Legal department where I worked offered me a position as an auditor (I had other qualifications which also made me a candidate).

While I worked as a Compliance Auditor and HIPAA Auditor, I was privy to violations in medical facilities around our city. During my tenure at a particular facility, my son suffered an injury that left him paralyzed from his chest down at age 17. The injury was featured in our local papers and news.

When I returned to work, I was greeted by a former colleague who stated "I was really concerned about your son, so I looked at his scans and xrays. I'm sorry about what's happened".  I was livid. "You violated his privacy", I quipped and stormed out.

After I cooled off, I thought about something... People do foolish things sometimes. In fact, sometimes they think they are doing good, especially when it relates to issues of medical care. Medical privacy has to be respected and honored by everyone - patients, physicians, nurses, ancillary staff, etc.

My long winded story really sums up to this - people need to be informed about what they can and cannot do as it relates to medical information. It only takes one time.

I plan on using this blog as a means to discuss medical privacy issues, violations and education as I'm come to learn over the past 7 years.