Went to see my GP yesterday and he showed me the new Victorian rolled out Safe Script.
In summary, any health professional can login and see what you have been prescribed and by who and where you had the prescription filled. While it will certainly stop doctor shoppers, it also allows the government to see where you have been.
As an example, if I got a script from my GP and then went to do maintenance on my widowed mother in laws property a couple of hours a way, if I got the medicine from a chemist there the government would certainly know I had been there.
There is no opt out on this one. Good and bad I suppose is how I would describe it. I am not a doctor shopper, but in recent years have become much more concerned about my privacy as the internet just gets bigger and bigger.
Look Here -> |
If you had needed to attend another doctor while there, or you collapsed and were taken to hospital unconscious would it not assist the treating doctor to be able to see what had been prescribed and when that prescription was filled?
It adds on from the My Health Record - since my last doctor left town my new doctor can log into my account and see exactly what ive been treated for , by whom , where , what was prescribed and the results . The history is extensive , goes back about 10 years or more in my case. When we moved to QLD I had everything transferred up.
I was initially against the whole MHR thing because of the privacy issues but then thought I got nothing to hide so it doesn't worry me. And with each transaction like prescription or blood test I can choose to opt out anyway.
Same here, and because I've been through a couple of clinical trials, my health record is a huge piece of data.
What sort of 'doctor shoppers' are they trying to catch/curb anyhow? Is this some spin off of the alleged US opiate crisis or something? That's a genuine question ~ I know years ago there were doctor shoppers after certain drugs (to be sold illicitly and/or used in recreational sense)...is that still going on? Or are we talking barbs/downers addicts mostly found in the form of housewives? (<- that's possibly politically incorrect, but are home bodies still doing this?)
Doctor shopping still occurs. "My health record" and similar are designed to combat that. Given my wife's medical history, My health record has helped one doctor to diagnose a condition that had been borderline for years. He said, it's ok to be there for a short time, but not for as long as you have. Given that her medical file is several Manilla folders jam packed, It would have taken months to wade through the reports and such to establish this. With the computer, all he had to do was initiate a search on a particular blood test.
You can view your health record on the mygov website. Though, I do not know how much has been "left out".
I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message...
aa23 (02-04-20)
It doesn't add on if you opted out of my Health Record.
I was one of the first to opt in when MHR came out. Had it for about 2 years and asked for it to be removed. My GP has confirmed its gone.
I weighed up the pros and cons. Its simply too invasive for almost zero benefit. ANY and I mean any health "professional" (wide ranging term) can look your personal info up. The majority of my health records were not displayed, apart from prescriptions, which ironically only the state government can now see Daniel Andrews and Labor...what could possibly go wrong ?
A cut and paste as to why people opt out :
"Any registered health provider like your doctor, pharmacist, physiotherapist, nurse, diagnostic imaging and pathology practice, and other unidentified staff can see your record. It could also include your chiropractor, optometrist, osteopath, dentist, psychologist and Chinese medical practitioner because anyone registered with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency can access your information. As long you're a patient and they have the right software downloaded on their computer, they can look at your records."
Mental health as an example still has a stigma attached to it, sexually transmitted disease is another. Lets face it, if you are in a small town it only takes one person. As an example, about 10+ years ago someone who was employed in the pharmacy I go to told a third party what medication I was on (schedule 8). Needless to say, I had their employment terminated. But lets say I had the clap and that person told half the town........you can see where problems can happen.
I have had the same GP for over 20 years. If he died or something, I would have no problem with my records going to my new GP but thats about it.
My GP advised that Safe Script also allows the Victorian Government to spy on Doctors and see how much of what they are prescribing and how often.
eaglem (10-04-20),VroomVroom (02-04-20)
The largest doctor shoppers are now codeine hunters. Now that you cant even buy a headache pill with codeine in it over the counter (without a script) people have to find doctors to get Panadeine Forte scripts. Opioids (morphine, oxycontin etc), which are a schedule 8 drug, mainly require your GP referring you to a Pain Specialist who will either say yay or nay. A GP cant just put you on Oxycontin, the US of course is very different to here.
wotnot (02-04-20)
Bookmarks