[Philmont]: Medication information and privacy

Roy,

You raise a bit of a conundrum here. With the HIPPA privacy laws that
medical professionals must now practice under it may be hard to get
information about an individual's medical conditions and medications being
taken. I am really surprised that this has not become an issue with the
Philmont physical form yet.

I would like to suggest getting your crew's physical forms together at least
a month before departure, and then take the time to become familiar with
each person's conditions (but if I suggested this I would be breaking HIPPA
laws). Under HIPPA, unless you are a medical professional overlooking that
patient's care, you aren't even allowed to look at the physicals.

That being said, when I collected our contingent physical exams in May of
this year, I crafted a little HIPPA release/signature form stating that
parents/adults were aware that a medical professional (myself) would be
reviewing their physical and medication history in order to properly prepare
the advisors in the crews with possible medical/medication situations on the
trail.

I don't know if the little release I crafted would stand up, but all of the
parents knew I was a pharmacist and trusted me with the information. As it
turned out, one of our young men did not medicate properly for a couple of
days on the trail and the knowledge passed on to the advisors about what to
expect kept the young man on the trail instead of at the med shack back down
at base camp.

You have opened a VERY touchy subject concerning patient privacy. I would
really like to know the BSA's stance on this issue.

If you are given the medication information willingly, most of the questions
you raised (symptoms of over or underuse, side effects, proper dosing times,
etc.) can be found on reputable websites.

Shane Hoffman, R.Ph.
Advisor Crew 445 - www.crew445.org - SHoffman@crew445.org
ASM Troop 445 - www.troop445.org - SHoffman@troop445.org
"We should all realize that every right implies a responsibility, every
opportunity an obligation, every position a duty, and that the most
effective sermon is expressed in deeds instead of words." ~ Waite Phillips

----- Original Message -----
From: "R Fisher" <ghotier@texas.net>
To: "Multiple recipients of list philmont" <philmont@troop47.com>
Sent: Sunday, December 04, 2005 1:51 PM
Subject: RE: [Philmont]: Peanuts, EpiPens, and Anaphylaxis

> Tom Lindtveit writes in part:
>
>> Shane made me think of something else too, Pharmacists can
>> provide valuable information on medications and the effects
>> they will have. If you have a youth or adult on your crew
>> taking meds you know nothing about, you might want to ask
>> your local Pharmacist what those drugs are, how they work,
>> and what side effects they may have paying particular
>> attention to their effects under heavy exertion.
>
> I forget who it was, I think it was T.W. Cook, that had a crew member at
> Philmont that was taking a medication to control something that turned
> out to be a diuretic and the crew member got severely dehydrated as a
> result.
>
> I'm not a doctor or a pharmacist, but other questions I have on our med
> sheet are:
>
> What are the symptoms that the indicated medication might not have been
> taken?
> What other known medications, prescription and OTC, are contra-indicated
> or might have interaction problems?
> What conditions should the medications be taken, i.e. with food, X
> amount of time before/after meals, etc.
>
> Happy Trails,
>
> Roy Fisher
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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As you gather around this virtual campfire with fellow
Scouts and Scouters, do your best to be trustworthy,
loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient,
cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent.
-------------------------------------------------------

 
Received on Sun Dec 4 15:10:43 2005