Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:The Culture of Health Care
Unit:Health Care Processes and Decision Making
Lecture:Making a diagnosis
Choosing therapy
Communicating the plan
The impact of EHRs and technology on clinical decision-making
Slide content:Family, Friends, the Public What do they need to know? What will be best for the patient? What will be best for the family member? What can I legally tell? What can I ethically tell? 8
Slide notes:Very often, other individuals, such as significant others, parents, children, siblings, best friends, and possibly even the landlord, are interested in or need to know about the patients problem and the treatment plan. Which individuals are given information depends on the patient and his or her relationships. Several questions arise. What does each of these individuals need to know? What is best for the patient in terms of information sharing with his or her family and friends? What is best for the family members? What information can legally be disclosed? What can ethically be disclosed? Privacy laws clearly define limits that help answer some of these questions; however, in clinical practice, the answers are often individualized depending on the needs and the condition of the patient and the needs of his or her loved ones. Therefore, the second part of the communication plan is figuring out what to communicate to the patients family and friends and how to do so. Disclosure can be an important part of patient management and may have a significant impact on outcomes. 8