A Slick New Way For Keeping Track Of Medical Records

A Portable Library

To all of my subscribers out there, how many of you have a medical ailment or condition which requires you to carry some sort of bracelet or necklace which contains your medical information and data???  Heck, this even includes documentation which you have to carry in your purse or wallet.  Well, if you do, there could be a breakthrough on the way, which I came across this morning.  A Biometrics Vendor known as “SmartMetric” has just announced that it has launched the world’s first health records card, which is protected by Biometrics. 

Here are the details of this:  “If a person has diabetes, a heart condition, or any number of chronic or serious medical conditions, immediate secure access to their medical history and diagnostics can mean the difference between life and death in the case of an emergency. Now a person can conveniently carry their complete medical information and no matter where they are in the world, instant access to their vital medical information can be made by Doctors and Health Care professionals providing treatment. Access to this important private information is secure and protected by the owner's fingerprint. No fingerprint match means no access to the information on the card. Protecting privacy while protecting life, the new SmartMetric Portable Medical Records Card provides peace of mind for the millions of sufferers of chronic medical conditions.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9039/).

Final Thoughts On Today’s Posting

First and foremost, the Biometric Technology is Fingerprint Recognition. Once again, this comes to no surprise to me, as this is the technology of choice for most Security applications in the medical field and with regards to healthcare.  While I am sure there are other ways out there to contain your medical information and data on a card, this is the first time I have seen it being used with Biometrics.  And this I can say for sure, given I scour the Internet daily news and headlines in the Biometrics Industry.  And I think that personally, this is great, now that there is a secure way to contain your medical information, and have it on demand when it is needed, especially when you are in the ER, faced with a life and death situation. 

But, of course, with this huge plus, there are a number of big minuses as well which I will explore (hey that’s my job, right???).  First, what if the scenario exists that if a person is in a dire medical emergency, what if the information and data held in the records card cannot be accessed???  Since this is all controlled via Biometrics (I am assuming so at least), what if the Fingerprint Sensor fails to work, and extremely important stuff cannot be accessed???  This could mean a matter of life and death, in just a few minutes, or even in a few seconds.  Are there any other mechanisms in place which allow the healthcare worker (doctor, nurse, etc.) to access this data??? In other words, is there a fail safe in place??? Remember, as I have written about before, there is nothing fancy about Biometrics. 

It is just another piece of technology, and is prone to many failures just as well.  Second, what if the individual loses this health records card, and falls into the wrong hands??? Then what, are there other Security safeguards in place as well, to protect the information and data in it???  Third, just how rugged is this device, and how well can the technology in it absorb shock and extreme weather conditions???  By this, I mean, people are always on the move.  What if the individual accidentally dropped in water, or snow???  Can this device take a such an impact???  Fourth, from what I can gather, it appears to me that some of the Security of this device will be outsourced to different third parties.  For example, “An electronic imaging capture and transfer service will be managed by independent companies who will be bonded and audited to ensure record security.”  (SOURCE:  http://www.findbiometrics.com/industry-news/i/9039/). 

As you can see, this is a broadly stated quote.  Who are these independent companies???  Are they actual Biometrics/Security Vendors with a good reputation, or are they outsourced Security companies working somewhere in China and India???  These are questions I would want to have answered if I were to purchase this solution.  If Security mechanisms have to be outsourced, then I would want to have them outsourced to reputable Security companies here in the United States.  Fifth, although this may be a great solution today but remember, these new Biometric solutions have to keep up with pace of Federal Legislations and Mandates which are designed to protect patient privacy. 

And if the Federal laws keep changing, so do the products and solutions, which means in the end, the cost will come down to you via having to purchase an upgrade or an entirely new health card.  Sixth, there is the concern of wireless communications involved here.  I am sure that the medical information and data will have to be access this way, so what are the Security mechanisms in place to encrypt those wireless communications???  These are all serious questions to consider, and I am sure that there are more. But to end on a high note, it seems like that this health card is designed to extremely affordable to anybody who wants to use it . . . from the Press Release it is currently priced at below $89, which is the retail price.

Comments

[Electronic Medical Records]

Great post! I am a fan of electronic medical records and I am glad to see that there are some security measures set in place to avoid hacking!