Boarding and departure sheets vs HIPPA laws

Professional Mariner Forum
1

On some vessels as part of company policy you have to list all meds you are on in addition to other legal questions such as have you hurt yourself since your last time off or do you have a twic, ect, ect.

What I am wondering is are these sheets even legal?

For a company to ask you what kinds of meds you are on is ok. That is why you take a physical with their doctor where you list any meds and or medical conditions. From there it is decided if you are fit for duty.

Same goes for the coast guard.

Not all companies use the standard Coast Guard form for their physicals. Some companies take it step farther than the coast guard basic physical form and requirements because they will be insuring your health and your life.

I understand there are many crew members that we have to keep things simple stupid for and they need to answer a questonaire about whether they are taking a drug that might affect their ability to do the job safely or may have hurt themselves at home and try to pawn it off as a work place injury but it seems like the very nature of the information being listed on the boarding form itself should be kept between the coast guard, the company doctor, and the head of HR.

If I have been cleared to take a prescription laxative, should I have to list that I am having a problem taking a dump on a form that everyone from my captain the the bottom HR employee that sorts the paperwork out is going to be able to see?

This is what I am getting at. Privacy is privacy and if the coast guard and the company doctor say it is ok to take it and you don’t have to worry about failing a drug screen then does everyone from the captain to the office really need to know your priveledged health history?

Privacy is privacy

Let’s just say I have this friend who…

his back is blown out and he still manages to make it by the company physical xray but he gos to his own doctor for his back and keeps it quiet from the company so they don’t think he is going to try and sue them for an old injury.

Now there is talk about a national online involutary medical database for all amercians. Kind of like MIB only your entire medical history from the time you are a peanut to the time you are 6’ under.

Kinda scarry man. Big brother is moving in and we don’t even know it.

Not gonna be able to slide under the radar for a bad back, knees, ect anymore.

Yes some companies and the cg will grant waivers but others will not. In addition to an unnecessary risk on their vessels and any special accomodation they may have to make, one day their insurance company is going to have to pay to fix you and that means higher premiums in the long run.

But this friend of mine refuses to be sidelined for back pain or any other physical ailment as long as his mind is still in the game.

Screw SSI when you can make 15 times that a year by not being diabled especially when you don’t want to be.

Most responsible crew members do not need to list anything regarding their health on a boarding form.

A responsible crew member will have already advised the proper person in charge in his company and the company doctor before even trying to come back especiall if you have to be cleared for duty by your doctor.

Bottom line…

Violation of HIPPA law or not?

2

How easy is it to “pass” the CG medical? For example, it seems to me that most of us these days must be on a pill or inhaler for something, and judging by all the ads on the telly, the pharmaceutical companies are coming up with ever more for the slightest ailments.

Is there a list of certain drugs or medical conditions, that if you have or are prescribed them, then you would fail the medical. Is it OK to have high Cholesterol but not high blood pressure? Maybe it is OK to take an inhaler for allergies but not for Asthma, or Insulin if you are diabetic? Can you bring your Cialis with you (if you promise to only take it when you go ashore)?

Although we live in a non-discriminatory world, does age ever come into this? Say the experienced and valuable Capt or C/E or Bosun is approaching 50…carrying a bit more weight than he should, maybe needs a pill or two to get up or it up, does he have to meet the same criteria as the young whipper snapper lad just starting out.

And talking of age (and sorry for digressing off topic), but I often wonder about the age of today’s merchant mariner. I mean, is the average age increasing, decreasing or staying constant? Is there significant differences between deck officers, engineers and regular seamen? For those of you on offshore boats how old is each crew member and the same for anyone on a deep sea bucket, if you have the info it would be great to see it.

Reading this now I probably was not on post topic at all…sorry (as the Dalek said, climbing off a dustbin).

3

The purpose of HIPAA is to protect the safety of the health information organizations collect about individuals. It has nothing to do with what organizations can and cannot collect.

4

[QUOTE=Robert;32672]The purpose of HIPAA is to protect the safety of the health information organizations collect about individuals. It has nothing to do with what organizations can and cannot collect.[/QUOTE]

True. But any information they do collect on you is private and covered under HIPPA. Therefore private health information should be between you, the cg, the company doctor, and only the necessary people in HR. Not everyone that gets a chance to look at that boarding and departure form.

5

Though it may not be feasible for some (or most, rather) perhaps the easiest way to dodge that problem is to have any treatments and prescriptions done overseas. Costa Rica for one has free hospitals (not the best, mind you) and nearly everything that isn’t dangerous is available over the counter. I’ve worked with captains who live in central and south America who say that the only thing you have to pull out of your wallet is US currency. No questions no records sent back home.

6

[QUOTE=HawsePiper;33508]Though it may not be feasible for some (or most, rather) perhaps the easiest way to dodge that problem is to have any treatments and prescriptions done overseas. Costa Rica for one has free hospitals (not the best, mind you) and nearly everything that isn’t dangerous is available over the counter. I’ve worked with captains who live in central and south America who say that the only thing you have to pull out of your wallet is US currency. No questions no records sent back home.[/QUOTE]

Why would you [I]not [/I]want the medic or PIC-Medical Care onboard to know what meds you’re on or what condition you have when you’re on his table and he’s trying to keep you alive? Likewise, if you’re the medic or PIC wouldn’t you want access to all the info before you call the Doc on the VSAT or give the hand something he’s allergic to?

7

I am speaking as one who does not currently take any meds, so for me it is easy. But I really don’t see a problem with disclosing any and all meds for the sake of safety aboard. If I am the medical officer, and I often am, then I want to know what you are on before the emergency not try to search out the info when you are unconscious. Truthfully if you have already passed the cg or company physical then what more do you have to hide?

8

[QUOTE=CaptAndrew;33950]I am speaking as one who does not currently take any meds, so for me it is easy. But I really don’t see a problem with disclosing any and all meds for the sake of safety aboard. If I am the medical officer, and I often am, then I want to know what you are on before the emergency not try to search out the info when you are unconscious. Truthfully if you have already passed the cg or company physical then what more do you have to hide?[/QUOTE]

I am not talking about hiding anything. As far as being treated by a captain that thinks he is a doctor I would rather take my chances. If you have listed your meds or allergies, ect on your company physical then when the MEDPIC calls the company doc to treat you he will already have this information at hand.

If I have been treated for VD or enlarged prostate on my time off I don’t think I should have to list that on my boarding sheet so that everyone that is in the MEDPIC’s click can laugh and crack jokes until I enter the room.

As a responsible mariner it is your duty to get with the company doc and inform him of any treatment or meds you are taking or have recieved.

I don’t have a problem with full disclosure. I do have a problem with a form that is filled out and viewed by many more people than is should be.

Most companies will tell you in your orientation that if there is any change in the status of your health it is your duty to inform the proper people such as the company doc so this information may be noted and problems that have been brought up can be avoided.

If you don’t tell the company doc it is no different than not listing this change of health status on your boarding and departure sheet. If you want to take the chance of not disclosing important health information I guess that is your cross to bear if you have an alllergic reaction or something like this.
Furthermore I don’t think I would want to rely on using a boarding and departure sheet to inform my doc of any changes. I think I would rather call him myself or have my other doctor call him so that he is immediatley aware of any changes instead of relying on a sheet a paper that is really just a cyoa for the company to inform the company doc of a change in health status.

As a medpic it is not your duty to make important emergency medical decisions other than to try to stablize the patient until you can get a real doctor on the phone. I have never heard of anyone going into anaphalatic shock from an IV saline drip, a blood sugar test, blood pressure check, or administering oxygen.

Even if you know what meds the guys is on do you have the medical knowledge and background or even resources to really know what reacts with what? Stabilze and call for help.

If you are lucky enough to have a doc onboard that is different. By all means be totally honest with the guy and let him know everything the minute you step onboard. But this guy is a true professional and knows the consequences of discussing private medical information with anyone other than people that should be in the loop.

I don’t think the same can be said for some of the MECPIC’s i have worked with. Just because they have a credential does not mean they are a true professional or that they can be trusted with private medical information.

Company doctors are on call 24/7 for emergencies and your health records are just a click of the mouse away for them.

To further this, soon all medical records on everyone in the states will be on a nationwide database accessable by any medical professional. With the click of a mouse they will be able to view your medical history back to your birth. There will be no hiding anything unless of course you do the overseas thing if you have something to hide. But my point is I want my medical information to be between me and my doc. No one else needs to be in the loop unless the doc deems it necessary.

Most people that have diabetes, heart conditons, high blood pressure, ect are not embarresed to list these things and will even talk about them openly so that everyone knows in case they fall out. Some guys even wear bracelets so that this is one of the first things you are going to look for when you are trying to stabize a patient.
But there are other things that can be of a more private nature that a person should have a right to privacy on.

9

[QUOTE=OICUR12;34910]
I don’t have a problem with full disclosure. I do have a problem with a form that is filled out and viewed by many more people than is should be.[/QUOTE]

Maybe this is the real problem you should be complaining about

As a medpic it is not your duty to make important emergency medical decisions other than to try to stablize the patient until you can get a real doctor on the phone.

Thats true. But often where I sail the doctor is not a company man, it is a service and they DO NOT have all the info, unless I give it to them. If I were to transfer someone to the CG they need and expect ALL the relevant information to go with the patient.