Information sharing: transparency, nursing ethics, and practice implications with electronic medical records

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Bioethics
• Nursing Policy

Background:

• The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 mandated electronic medical records, sparking ethical debates.
• Ensuring patient privacy and data confidentiality in electronic health databases is a significant concern.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the ethical implications of mandated electronic medical records.
• To examine the role and policy articulation of the nursing discipline regarding privacy and confidentiality in electronic health databases.

Main Methods:

• Ethical discussion and analysis of information sharing and human freedom.
• Application of the humanBEcoming leadership model for transparency.

Main Results:

• The study highlights the critical need for nursing to establish clear ethical guidelines and policy statements.
• Transparency in data access and usage is essential for maintaining trust and ethical practice.

Conclusions:

• Nursing must proactively address the ethical challenges posed by electronic health records.
• The humanBEcoming leadership model provides a framework for ethical information management and enhanced transparency in nursing practice.