Situation role-based privacy control using dynamic credentials for emergency health services

Emerging Health Information Technologies (HIT) such as Electronic Health Record (EHR) and PHR systems and Heath Information Exchanges (HIEs) facilitate access to and sharing of patients' medical data distributed in different HIT systems. One of the many major challenges to overcome for EHRs to be successful and for sharing of patient information across different EHR systems in the HIE environment is patient privacy. Typically a patient has medical records in various providers' EHR systems. In this diversely distributed system, it is difficult to ensure the consistent privacy control of distributed health information of the patient. Currently, a patient in the initial visit to a doctor's office fills out a paper-based questionnaire regarding health information privacy and release permissions and how his or her own heath information may be shared. It is difficult to ensure that privacy is controlled in the manner a patient specifies or to ensure that healthcare providers honor the privacy specifications by the patient about sharing and using his or her own health data. The patient simply relies on the organization's policy in good faith, but has no control over who can access what and how her own data can be shared and used.