[Mercurial]

We received a flyer the other day in relation to adding our details to the government's eHealth program (a secure online record of your medical records that can be accessed by professionals as needed).

http://www.ehealth.gov.au/internet/ehealth...sf/content/home

What do you think, too scary to have that much of what could be incredibly private health information on the web? Any less secure than using eTax or similar.

DS is nearly six and we have probably seen 20 medical professionals in his life. It would certainly be handy to have all that information in one place.

[hayleymumof3]

I got a letter about it today.

I am not sure I want that kind of information floating around the web.

[elizabethany]

For me the benefits outweigh the risks, mainly because your health info is gernerally ALREADY availiable to people who really want to get it.

Most doctors nowdays have electronic notes, stored on internet connected computers. I would trust the Federal Government (or actually, the public service in this case) much more than I trust my local GP with their standard home security packages. The benefit is that info is less likely to be missed when you see a different doctor, and there are no fees to change doctors (such as transfer or photocopy fees many GPs have on your records).

If I had had this, I would have been diagnosed and treated with my Arthritis about 3 years earlier because they would have known about symptoms I presented with to other doctors, but I didn't mention because I didn't realise they were relevant. I didn't realise that getting a fever frequently in school was relevant to arthritis. It turns out they were Rheumatoid flares, not a virus.

[Sinister Bonnet]

I will be doing it because it streamlines the information. I'm really not worried about it being out there on the web. It's no more accessible (and possibly less accessible) than files floating around a hospital.