Goals
The goals of the Community Health Center of Richmond, Inc. (CHCR) Patient Rights Policy are to promote and protect patient rights and dignity, and to ensure patient rights and responsibilities are integrated throughout all staff interactions with patients.
Procedures
Confidentiality:
CHCR makes every effort to provide the utmost confidentiality to all aspects of the patient’s visit to the health center. All employees are instructed (at initial staff orientation and annually thereafter) on confidentiality policies and procedures. All employees sign a confidentiality statement, which is retained in the employee’s personnel record.
CHCR operates in full compliance with all applicable HIPAA laws and regulations. Patient protected health information (PHI) is only released to other health care facilities upon receipt of a signed patient release form. Exceptions that allow for disclosures without written permission include, but are not limited to, medical emergencies, reporting information on communicable diseases to the New York State Department of Health/New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, mandated reporting of child abuse, litigation, or administrative activities. The organization’s specific guidelines are followed for providing information under these special circumstances.
Facsimile transmissions of patient PHI are discouraged. However, when it is necessary to fax patient PHI, the fax is followed by a telephone confirmation that the information was received at the intended destination.
To read the entire document, please download a pdf of the Patient Bill of Rights.