Wellness

[Snoopp]

Honestly, there is some weird data mining going on.  My gastroenterologist's office was asking about mammograms.  

[Tinkrbl44]

@Carmie

I only read the first page of posts here, but ... 

If there were odd questions on a new patient form, I would ask the DOCTOR for an explanation when I went in for my exam.  Sometimes there really are good reasons for having this information. 

Having said that  .....  Personally, I'm in the "Need to know" camp...  I decide if they need to know.  I don't give them my SS# or other info deemed by me to be unnecessary .... unless they can explain the  necessity for having them to my satisfaction.  Hey, I might not have considered something, and it really IS relevant.  I will have learned something new about medicine that day.

Of course, if it's a little off the wall, you can always lie ... or make something up.  Just be sure it won't come back to bite you later.      

[sfnative]

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@Lipstickdiva wrote:

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@sfnative wrote:

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@Lipstickdiva

Believe me when I say that it would have to be an incredibly backward medical practice to go online, find a form and use it to garner patient information, without first having a staff meeting with the physician(s).

The normal routine is to leave this in the hands of the Physician Owners, Practice Manager and the law firm which represents the practice.  Nothing should ever even come close to the copy machine, then to patients, without composition by  the parties mentioned above.  It all relates to matters of HIPPA, subject specific to the physician's practice/specialty and Patient's Bill of Rights, amongst other things.

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@sfnative, I agree but sometimes I'm shocked at one goes on in offices and if no one brings it to the doctor's attention, it doesn't get changed. 

There are some very old school physicians who don't pay much attention to HIPPA either. 

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@Lipstickdiva

All patients have a right and need to speak up!  If they don't, they're part of the problem (in my book), as physicians are not required by law to take a HIPPA exam.

When HIPPA was initially instituted, yes.  I experienced that at both hospitals at which I worked.

And, there are just some physicians who have no business practicing medicine, like the Internist I went to as my new PCP.  We were discussing my history and I told him I have chronic migraine.  He looks at me and said, "There's no such thing."  He escalated into a rather manic rant about me!  Could not get over that.  Never went back.

[Stray]

Lifestyle questions are part of the medical history for an OB/Gyn not so much for a medical practice, except smoking/drinking.  These questionnaires are one size fits all for all ages and groups and not targeted to each individual.   I would have no problem answering them but if you did, you have a right to decline.  Rather than waste your time arguing with the assistant, just speak with the doctor directly and express your feelings.  Most likely, he/she would just tell the assisant to write "declined". 

But the information might be very pertinent to others diagnosis and care. 

[lovesrecess]

I would never answer questions like that. I was at a Dr apt last week and though I have seen him before, the receptionist gave a new stack of paperwork to fill out due to "new regulations". One page was devoted to a checklist of "risky behaviors". I couldn't even figure out what most of them meant, so I left the entire page blank, but I found almost all of them intrusive and in no way medically necessary.

HIPPA forms should include privacy from the government.

[Evie2004]

Regarding gyn exams, about 8 yrs ago, I asked my primary care physician for a gyn referral several years ago & she offered to do my Pap smear with my next office visit. She has been doing my pap, breast exam, etc,ever since..she had told me that if you have had no abnormal Pap smears, they can be done every 2 years after you turn 70 years of age. I am happy that I don't have to sit in an ob-gyn office, no extra co-pays, & don't have to answer any weird questions, as she knows me very well. I do continue with a mammogram yearly.

Unless someone has some chronic gyn problems, I don't understand why anyone wouldn't go for this idea.