Hi DJ, Rangers do not fall under the guidelines of HIPAA. That is only for "health providers" or "associates" of health providers. For example, any hospital, doctor, group home, health insurance company, medical billing office, etc. is required to follow the guidelines. I agree that it should not be available to "just anyone." However, maybe you could make copies available to those who have a need to know. The church should have a copy since it is the church who is legally liable for injuries, etc. And the commanders dealing with that boy would certainly need to know. BTW, I've made a "fill-in" medical form that can be emailed to parents, they can fill it in on the computer, then email it back with an electronic signature, then get you an original signed copy later (for what it's worth).
Blessings, David North -----Original Message----- From: DJ [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Thursday, April 06, 2006 6:30 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [RR] Medical information privacy Greetings in Christ! An interesting discussion came up at my last leaders meeting at Evangel Temple AG in KC, MO. It seems some of my leaders are concerned about the privacy of the medical information we gather and how it should be protected. I've been checking out Ranger Navigator, a fairly new database system by Ray Skinner, (www.rangerdepot.com) its fantastic and of course it has a complete section on medical information for each boy. I thought it was a great idea to keep this information stored in the database, but then I realized I intended for any commander in the outpost to be able to use Ranger Navigator to keep all of our records current so everyone would have access to the medical stuff. On the other hand, I feil that any medical information about boys in our outpost should be made known to any commander who was going to be responsible/spending time with that boy. My dilemma is basically the security of this information. I am almost certain we do not fall under the 1996 federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), however I was hoping that perhaps someone has some solid, legal knowledge in this area as to how we are required to handle the medical information we collect. In the past, I have always kept these medical forms in a folder in my desk. Common sense would dictate it not be available to the general public, but should it be locked up? Do staff church members have a right to see the information? Is there "official" guidelines on who has a need to know? Contributors to this discussion should refrain from expressing opinions, everyone has an opinion on this very sensitive subject. Sound, researchable information will greatly benefit us all. I would also be curious if the national office has any policy regarding this, perhaps in an LTA training module I haven't taken yet. in His service, All for the glorification of His kingdom DJ Hall Senior Commander Outpost #78 Kansas City Section S. MO District Gulf Region www.rangerdj.com _______________________________________________ The Golden Rule is my daily rule. To send mail to everyone on the RangerNet mailing list, send it to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Only list members may post. To subscribe or unsubscribe, please visit http://lists.rangernet.org/mailman/listinfo/rangernet
