Whenever you are receiving medical care of any kind, one of the primary expectations that you may reasonably have is for a certain degree of privacy. After all, it should be up to you to reveal whatever information you want to reveal as and when you want to, or to keep it secret otherwise. At certain times this might be particularly concerning, such as when you are receiving help with an addiction. The question is: do medical records show whether or not you are prone to addiction? And if so, what can you do about it?
Do Medical Records Show If You Are Prone To Addiction?
In general: yes, medical records will show if you have had a history of addiction, especially if you have received help with that addiction. This will be on your medical records, and in theory, be available to any medical professionals who work with you in the future.
However, it’s not entirely that simple. While the medical record will show addiction, it will not necessarily always be accessible to a doctor, nurse, or other professional. Part of the reason for that is it depends on what system is being used by that individual or team.
For instance, if one institution uses a software system called McKesson, while another uses Cerner, they won’t necessarily be able to read the same files. In this case, it would not be on the record for anyone to see at the second institution.
The Matter Of Consent
All that being said, there is also the matter of consent to consider. Technically speaking, nobody should be able to access your medical records without your consent anyway, so that is something that you should be aware of too. That means that it’s not possible for someone to simply delve in and see your medical history without asking you, and without you giving explicit confirmation of this.
If you think there has been a breach of this privacy, that is something you should be able to take up with someone. Nobody deserves to have their privacy invaded in this way, after all.
In general, medical records are sealed, and particular information is sealed too in theory – including the information relating to whether or not you have experience with addiction. So this is another reason that you should hopefully not have to worry about this in the future.
Getting Help
No matter what, you should always seek help if you think you need it, even if you are worried about your privacy. After all, it’s most important to simply make sure that you have the help you need. But as long as you go to a trusted professional, you can be sure that your privacy is going to be maintained and respected throughout the entire treatment procedure, which is very important in all of this as well.
Be sure to seek help from the right institutions and careers, and you are going to be able to have all of this respected.