Patient recorded me

[toofy]

I keep everything in the open. When I see them recording, I say the following: "Here in Texas, this is a one party rule where you don't have to ask my permission to record. But I do ask that you provide me a copy of your recording today if you want to proceed with treatment". I always speak as if I am being recorded. This allows me to have an unaltered version.

[bovie]

It would be a great idea to record all patient interactions.

Nope.

[afan]

I would not have a problem but I tend to speak as if I am being recorded anyway.

It would be a great idea to record all patient interactions. I have not heard of places doing that. I recall seeing something about a place that video recorded the consent process. It was supposed to reduce claims that risks were omitted when the discussion took place.

At times we get complaints from patients about what docs said during an encounter. Having a recording would help resolve the situations.

[Rimram]

That is a little creepy. Like someone else mentioned, you should look into your state laws & employer regulations. You might not have to consent to it and it seems petty for them to do so over a minor mix up.

[Savedfpdoc]

The problem I see with this is that you’d be naïve to think that patients wouldn’t pull short audio clips out of context while conveniently losing the context portions of the audio. Perhaps a fringe case, but imagine a malicious patient purposefully provoking and antagonizing you then posting your response on youtube in edited form and reframing it how they want to. Even reasonable physicians could be made to look deranged and unhinged with the right provocative maneuvers by the patient. In the OP case, the best bet is to be overly nice in such an encounter and then subsequently ban that patient from your practice a few weeks after the encounter. Otherwise you could keep them on and reward their behavior. If enough patients think it is ok then it becomes the norm. If it does become the norm, then physicians will have to also record every encounter in a hipaa compliant manner just to protect themselves.

Agreed. I was planning on leaving it alone but didn’t think about him being able to edit the recording…probably would be easier just to dismiss him if he continues to want to record rather than get corporate to give me a voice recorder that stays in the office as recording on my phone would not be hipaa compliant…hmmm

[F0017S0]

Hoist anchor, shove off.

[AR]

Of course, it's not exactly true, but the mindset that just about everything you say about the patient is in medical record, including grammar and syntax errors and other malapropisms and gaffes, perhaps gives you the mindset that just about everything you say ends up being on-record.

I know when I dictate notes there is an opportunity to correct these before the report is finalized. I suppose I might miss them sometimes, but I do catch a lot.

Is that not the case for you?

[AR]

the different part about (diagnostic) radiology is that the images are forever. a physical exam, an unrecorded conversation, a procedure or surgery, those don't exist the way radiology images do.

did the cardiologist miss a murmur? did the FP miss a breast lump on physical exam?

when a mammogram can be magnified and put up in front of a jury with the negative mammogram report, and then the subsequent mammograms that show the subtle architectural distortion that was there on the original blossomed into an obvious mass on the next mammogram, is unique about radiology

I agree, but that difference is not due to the recording part. It's due to the fact that the image remains forever, as you point out.

And it's not entirely unique to radiology. Pathologists have a very similar problem.

[jacoavlu]

That's not actually true, is it? If you had an unusual case you could show it to some colleagues and have a bit of a discussion and the only thing that ends up recorded is what you finally dictate.

And I'm assuming if you do interventional stuff, your entire discussion with the patient, including obtaining consent and answering their questions and such is not recorded either.

Everything other clinicians dictate into chart notes are transcribed and available for all to read also. That's not any different than a dictated radiology report.

I definitely agree with your conclusion, but there is nothing unique about radiology that gets you there.

the different part about (diagnostic) radiology is that the images are forever. a physical exam, an unrecorded conversation, a procedure or surgery, those don't exist the way radiology images do.

did the cardiologist miss a murmur? did the FP miss a breast lump on physical exam?

when a mammogram can be magnified and put up in front of a jury with the negative mammogram report, and then the subsequent mammograms that show the subtle architectural distortion that was there on the original blossomed into an obvious mass on the next mammogram, is unique about radiology

[medicoFIRE]

The problem I see with this is that you’d be naïve to think that patients wouldn’t pull short audio clips out of context while conveniently losing the context portions of the audio. Perhaps a fringe case, but imagine a malicious patient purposefully provoking and antagonizing you then posting your response on youtube in edited form and reframing it how they want to. Even reasonable physicians could be made to look deranged and unhinged with the right provocative maneuvers by the patient. In the OP case, the best bet is to be overly nice in such an encounter and then subsequently ban that patient from your practice a few weeks after the encounter. Otherwise you could keep them on and reward their behavior. If enough patients think it is ok then it becomes the norm. If it does become the norm, then physicians will have to also record every encounter in a hipaa compliant manner just to protect themselves.

[VagabondMD]

That's not actually true, is it? If you had an unusual case you could show it to some colleagues and have a bit of a discussion and the only thing that ends up recorded is what you finally dictate.

And I'm assuming if you do interventional stuff, your entire discussion with the patient, including obtaining consent and answering their questions and such is not recorded either.

Everything other clinicians dictate into chart notes are transcribed and available for all to read also. That's not any different than a dictated radiology report.

I definitely agree with your conclusion, but there is nothing unique about radiology that gets you there.

Of course, it's not exactly true, but the mindset that just about everything you say about the patient is in medical record, including grammar and syntax errors and other malapropisms and gaffes, perhaps gives you the mindset that just about everything you say ends up being on-record.

[Lordosis]

With modern day software it is easy to edit video and audio to show whatever you want.

Even if it is simply just omitting important parts.

[AR]

As a radiologist, we are accustomed to every single word that we say being recorded and transcribed and available for all to read.

That's not actually true, is it? If you had an unusual case you could show it to some colleagues and have a bit of a discussion and the only thing that ends up recorded is what you finally dictate.

And I'm assuming if you do interventional stuff, your entire discussion with the patient, including obtaining consent and answering their questions and such is not recorded either.

Everything other clinicians dictate into chart notes are transcribed and available for all to read also. That's not any different than a dictated radiology report.

I definitely agree with your conclusion, but there is nothing unique about radiology that gets you there.

[VagabondMD]

As a radiologist, we are accustomed to every single word that we say being recorded and transcribed and available for all to read. Even though the context in the OP is somewhat different, perhaps it is why this does not bother me all that much, except the threats, of course. Why would I say something that I would not want the patient's spouse, child, primary care physician, or lawyer to listen to later?

[mamaham]

I wonder if these signs increase or decrease rates of recording. It almost seems like what are they hiding - maybe I'd better record.

Obligatory not a lawyer - I don't think these signs would protect you if someone was using a recording in a lawsuit in a one party consent state. You could potentially use the policy as a rationale for immediate terminate of the patient for violating practice policy if you caught them. However, your office policy would not make recording illegal in a one party state. With the technology easily avalible I just assume any patient may be recording me.

Sorry I should have noted that I am not a physician. But the doctor offices that I go to have these signs. But I agree they are not legally binding. I would assume that doctors don’t want to be recorded not because they are hiding something, but rather for hippa etc.