Are you concerned about the accuracy and privacy of your medical records?
Right now, health authorities in the Lower Mainland are planning to contract out all medical transcription services in a move that puts the confidentiality and accuracy of patient records at risk.
They plan to contract out the work of more than 130 medical transcriptionists to a private contractor. That's 130 B.C. workers – mostly women – who will lose decent, family-supporting jobs.
These medical transcriptionists are responsible for transcribing physicians’ voice-recorded dictation of your surgical procedures, consultations, medical histories, laboratory and diagnostic test results, and various reports.
Health authorities already contract out some of this work – and existing in-house transcriptionists spend a lot of time correcting their mistakes. Now, health authorities want to contract out 100 per cent of the work to home-based subcontractors located across the country.
Is that how you want your medical information handled?
Please take a minute to email your concerns to B.C.'s health minister Margaret MacDiarmid and to opposition health critic Mike Farnworth. Feel free to edit this message and add your own thoughts. After you send it, you'll receive an email with a link you can click to verify your message. Please note: Your message will not be sent until that process is completed.
Thank you for your support.
MEDIA:
HEU secretary-business manager Bonnie Pearson was interviewed on Vancouver’s Co-op Radio on February 20, 2013. She answered questions about the provincial budget, her views on the BC Liberals’ opinion on health care workers, and the medical transcription campaign. You can scroll forward on the play button – she’s on from about the 12:20-minute mark for around 10 minutes.
- Media Morning: Wednesday, February 20, 2013 - 7:00 AM http://www.coopradio.org/station/archives/14076
More information:
Spiralling costs for outsourced medical transcription puts pressure on strained health budgets, says HEU, February 25, 2013
Union raises concerns over backlogged medical reports, February 13, 2013
HEU calls for audit of outsourced medical transcription services over privacy concerns, January 31, 2013
Costs of outsourcing medical transcription skyrocket by 150 per cent in just four years, April 30, 2012
Plan to contract out medical transcription threatens patient confidentiality – HEU, March 22, 2012