Bereavement Professional

  • 1.  Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-14-2016 06:47 PM

    Hello, we are transitioning documentation of bereavement counseling sessions from paper files to electronic. Our hospice uses Suncoast for our database. For those of you who use electronic documentation for bereavement counseling notes (Suncoast or otherwise), do you take measures to prevent access of the counseling notes by non-bereavement staff? We have policies in place that state employees should only view patient records when there is a need related to their job responsibilities, however we are considering if measures should/can be set up to actually prevent access of non-bereavement staff.

     

    Thank you for your thoughts/experience on this matter!

     

    Maggie Cochran, LCSW

    Bereavement Supervisor

    Hospice Austin

    4107 Spicewood Springs Rd, Suite 100

    Austin, TX 78759

    512-342-4784

    www.HospiceAustin.org

     

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  • 2.  RE: Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-15-2016 06:49 AM

    Yes. Rights are given to staff by your admins based on their needs. For example, staff who run reports have rights assigned and others don't. As a new counselor comes on board, our business staff who support our Suncoast system, must go into Staff Maintenance to set them up with the rights to do their tasks. 

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    Terri C. Ray, MA, NCC, LPCS
    Director of Counseling Services
    Gaston Hospice
    Gastonia, NC 28054
    704-861-8405

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-15-2016 11:32 AM

    Hi Maggie,

    We utilize Netsmart EMR and we have a separate business unit. Patient charts are in one area and bereaved in another. Bereavement staff have access to both so that we can check for further information on transfers that come to us. I think this is really vital because we also serve a significant # of community members.

    Best of luck,

    Cindi

    ________________________________

    Cindi Gray, LCSW

    Director of Grief Support Program

    Hospice of Santa Cruz County

    430-3039

    cgray@hospicesantacruz.org

    www.hospicesantacruz.org

     

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  • 4.  RE: Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-15-2016 11:49 AM

    Hi Maggie -

    We document counseling sessions in the Suncoast EMR.  Employees sign yearly HIPAA training and should not be going into records that do not pertain to them.  There are random audits and if found out, they would lose their job.  It has not been an issue.  

    Hope that helps.

    Diane

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    Diane Snyder Cowan, CHPCA,MA,MT-BC
    Director of Bereavement Center
    Hospice of the Western Reserve, Inc

    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-16-2016 05:26 AM

    Gentle Reminder to the Group,

    Patient privacy is so important. In my agency when we had patients on a team that a staff member was part of, but were not actually caring for that patient, if the patient was a public figure or "one of our own" i.e. a staff member with terminal illness, you may need to see who has been "reading" the chart.  Suncoast EMR Software also offers a Staff Monitor Report that will show any place a staff member "has been" in a chart, and anything that they have viewed.  You must tell the system who you wish to monitor and then run the report to see in whose chart they have been in and what areas they accessed.

    ------------------------------
    Debra Wood

    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Electronic Storage of Bereavement Counseling Notes

    Posted 12-15-2016 12:44 PM

    We have been on Suncoast for many years. Our agency has a very clear policy against anyone not involved with the patient looking at other charts.  And they are busy enough with their own cases I truly don't believe they bother – bereavement counselors provide updates at times in the team meetings.

              When bereaved staff have sessions with hospice employees who are bereaved however we keep that documentation on paper in a locked file rather than in Suncoast. Once we are no longer seeing them that file goes over to HR's files.

     

     

    Patti

     

    Patti Anewalt, PhD, LPC, FT

    Director of Pathways Center for Grief & Loss

    Hospice & Community Care

    Phone (717) 391-2413

    Direct (717) 717-391-2412

    Fax (717) 735-9667

    www.pathwaysthroughgrief.org

     

    For Online Grief Education and Support

    Click  here: Composing Life Out of Loss

     

     

    Steering Committee Member,

    National Council of Hospice & Palliative Care Professionals

    Member of the Board of Directors for the

    Association for Death Education and Counseling

     

     

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