Ethics and the Electronic Health Record in Dental School Clinics

Abstract

Electronic health records (EHRs) are a major development in the practice of dentistry, and dental schools and dental curricula have beneitted from this technology. Patient data entry, storage, retrieval, transmission, and archiving have been streamlined, and the potential for teledentistry and improvement in epidemiological research is beginning to be realized. However, maintaining patient health information in an electronic form has also changed the environment in dental education, setting up potential ethical dilemmas for students and faculty members. The purpose of this article is to explore some of the ethical issues related to EHRs, the advantages and concerns related to the use of computers in the dental operatory, the impact of the EHR on the doctor-patient relationship, the introduction of web-based EHRs, the link between technology and ethics, and potential solutions for the management of ethical concerns related to EHRs in dental schools.

Big Data and Digitalization in Dentistry: A Systematic Review of the Ethical Issues

“…Nine papers discussed the increased employment of Big Data and data analytics in dentistry related to different applications such as data linkage [34], data analytics in dental schools [35], personalized medicine [36], EHRs [37][38][39], and mHealth and teledentistry [40][41][42].…”

“…Three papers focused on the implementation of EHRs both in private practices and in dental education [37][38][39]. Ethical issues that arise from this technology are data security, as sensitive patient information could be more easily accessed by unauthorized third parties, resulting in a breach of patient privacy and confidentiality [38,43].…”

“…In addition, Cederberg and Valenza [38] argue that the use of digital records might compromise the doctor patient relationship in the future, as easy access to all relevant information through digital means and forced focus on the computer screen could accustom students to becoming more detached from patients.…”

A ‘Period of Maladjustment’:

“…• Faculty role modeling: Formal education in ethics and professionalism will be ineffective and undermined if trainees lack exemplary role modeling by faculty. 14 • Enrich training programs regarding use of EHR or certification of patients for medical marijuana: Instruction on the mechanics of these modernizations falls short if it does not also present the ethical dilemmas that can occur and provide tools physicians and PAs can use to exercise sound judgment.…”

Problems of education in foreign university dental clinics

“…В то же время сохранение информации о здоровье пациента в электронной форме изменило отношения в про-фессиональной среде и вызвало дискуссию об этической составляющей нововведения. Возникли некоторые достаточно сложные вопросы, связанные с использованием электронной карты пациента в стоматологических школах, злоупотреблением этой технологией [40]. Стоматологические школы должны не только принимать эти достижения компьютерной техники, но и гарантировать, что студенты-стоматологи, преподаватели и сотрудники будут соблюдать правила этичного поведения как хранители этой важной информации.…”