HIPAA Release form?

They would have to give written permission at the doctor of Hospital. I believe it is a release of information form.

It varies from state to state as to what it is called along with over time. In this area most doctor's offices and hospitals can provide the form. Also if it is for some type of procedure the document that a person signs agreeing to the procedure can have a entry asking who is allowed to have the information. That document may also include who will direct medical care if something happens. Sometimes these are separate items but they can also be combined. It is his decision on who if any he names. It may be a friend rather than parents. It should always be someone that HE trusts to do what his wishes are which may not be the parents.

Edited to add that since my Medical POA lives out of state I had a secondary added with the wordage that if the designated person was unavailable or unable a friend in the area could make the necessary decisions. I had the secondary document written at the same time I did my will.

Before my daughter passed away she had to sign the release form for every Dr & hospital she went to. Your adult child has to sign the form. Before the release was signed my daughter was taken to the hospital & when we went there we could not get any information about her because of the darn HIPPA. She was being transferred to another hospital & they could not even give us the name of where they were taking her. Do this ASAP

Mary, I am so sorry for the loss of your daughter.

Always, probably HIPPA but it’s possible you’re looking for a medical power of attorney. Usually people have them for their older parents, but it’s possible for a parent to need one for their adult child.

Ditto, very sorry to learn of the death of your daughter. .

Anyone can have a medical power of attorney for their mail carrier, the relationship doesn't matter.

Ask the care provider, that would be easiest. If a physician, ask their office. If a hospital, ask them when registering. Both likely have a supply of the right form ready to fill out and sign on the spot. Completing this paperwork is not unusual.

HIPPA has amped up what was in place for many many years. I went to nursing school in 1978 and it was ground into our heads, nobody gets information. I think HIPPA is good in a lot of cases. Not all of course. I remember my aunt was in the hospital where I worked and I was not allowed to tell my mom., she soon found out but not from me.

“ Always, probably HIPPA but it’s possible you’re looking for a medical power of attorney”

I believe you’re referring to the healthcare proxy. POA handles the financial aspect. But the healthcare proxy kicks in when the patient is unable to make their own decisions. To release information prior to that, I believe it’s a HIPAA form, and yes, that would be specific to each facility. In the case of my father over the past year, in many cases his verbal consent seemed to satisfy many of his doctors to talk to me. All calls come to me, and sometimes they even take my word for it. Not sure how legal that is, technically, but they don’t seem overly concerned about it once I say I’m his son.

ETA - Always, are you looking to get information or to make decisions? That might be two separate things. In my fuzzy circumstance, I’m only third in line on the proxy but have been authorizing/refusing treatments on behalf of my father. Again, not sure how kosher that is.

"I believe you’re referring to the healthcare proxy. POA handles the financial aspect."

What it is doesn't vary with the term in use in one place or another.

A power of attorney is a legal document authorizing one person to act on behalf of another and whose acts as enumerated are to be treated as if done by the individual themselves, under the circumstances prescribed.

A power of attorney concerning financial matters or legal matters may be called a financial power of attorney. Or, if broad, a general power of attorney.

A power of attorney covering medical or healthcare matters could be called a medical or healthcare power of attorney.

I'm named in both such types of agreements to act for others and that's how they're labeled. In my West Coast location. Other names may be common elsewhere, it doesn't change what they are, what they do, what they're used for.

The term proxy is frequently used for someone given the right to vote for another. When a company holds votes at an annual meeting, the Board will solicit proxies from shareholders who won't be attending to vote on their behalf. When a legislator votes on behalf of a colleague, they'll often say "For Mr X by proxy".

Ok, might be regional. We’re always asked about the healthcare proxy and that’s what our document is named.

You can ask me for a bottle of warda anytime, I'll know what you mean.

Just looked at the documents I have for my mom and it’s called Durable Health Care Power of Attorney and Advance Health Care Directive.

Hopefully a lawyer will pass by to chime in - my professional work involved a segment of the law in a different area but I'm not a lawyer.

A Power of Attorney is just that, the designating another with authority to decide and act on another's behalf

An Advance Care Directive contains focused instructions to explain the wishes of a person requiring medical care when unable to speak for themselves, with examples of what might be said including:

Do Not Resuscitate or No Extreme measures to extend my life or Do anything reasonably possible in the judgement of the physician to keep me alive no matter what the resultant quality of life may be. And variations and alternatives

Ours is called “Health Care Proxy.” I’d have made healthcare one word. 😂

Elmer - It does sound like your (and Ded’s) POA gives authority that our proxy does not.

I have one for my grand kids. The title at the top is “Medical Authorization Form.”

Here in Michigan it an authorization form as stated above. No decisions for the person's care only to get informatioin.

I'm not sure if it's allowed everywhere but i believe in many places a properly written Healthcare Power of Attorney can include language (in compliance with HIPAA) granting permission (and thus authorization to any service provider) to disclose all medical and health information, and disclosures from physicians, to the designated third party agent. Especially in cases where the principal is incapacitated but needs treatment decisions to be made, it's not like it's reasonable to request or expect that a separate authorization form could be signed.

It's HIPAA, not HIPPA.

A POLST (Provider/Physician/Portable Orders For Life-Sustaining Treatment) is recommended for people in their last years of life or those with a life-limiting condition.

To avoid unwanted treatment (e.g., hospital/ICU admission, feeding tubes, ventilators, CPR) a POLST form is recommended.

The POLST is 1 page, front & back, with check boxes that tell providers what treatment they want, in case they need it.

The difference between a POLST and Advance Directive is 1-page medical direction versus multiple pages of complex legalese that makes it difficult to quickly find important information in an emergency situation.

If someone changes their preferences, the POLST can be changed at any time.

https://polst.org/form-patients/

https://polst.org/national-form/

I think you've said you're an ER doc? I'd be interested to know what percentage of emergency and or unconscious patients you see come in alone (without close friends or family), or who are accompanied by people whose say so, absent providing signed paperwork, would be accepted?

And here in N.Y. we call it MOLST. 😀

Too many people that are unconscious, come in (via EMS) to the ED alone, either because they live alone or were out alone. Until we know they want something different, they get aggressive resuscitation. Life support can always be withdrawn later (when family/documents arrive), but lost time cannot be recovered.

Thanks, I suspected that was the case. Thanks for the clear explanation and sharing the rationale.

My family doctor and I just filled out one of those POLST forms. Excellent thing to have on hand besides my medical directive part of my will.

We did one for my college student; from what I've heard the paperwork needed can be different, in different states (just to make it easier, right?).

The OP was asking ..” What is the form called that a parent would need for the doctor/medical staff of an adult child giving permission for the doctor to speak to their parent?”

Our 18 year old granddaughter wanted her mother involved in hearing directly from her doctor about an upcoming procedure, granddaughter had to sign a HIPAA release of some sort. She didn’t want or need a POA or other form for the doctor’s office to share patient information.

Yeah that’s why I questioned exactly what the intention is.

I've done my POLST with my oncologist and DH is doing his with our primary care doctor on Monday. (These forms require a doctor's signature and one witness.) One of my infustion nurses said to keep the POLST where it will be seen by first responders -- on a refrigerator door or bedside table.

I struggled with the directive about whether to allow transport to hospital -- where I have my doubts that DNR or 'Do Not Intubate' would be recognized...if the instructions even make it to the hospital. I'd guess that a POLST is only likely to be recognized by the first responders, if then. (Nobody wants to risk a lawsuit for doing too little.) Perhaps it would be wise not call for help if you've limited how much help you want?

Chisue - If you have a local hospital where you’d likely end up, you can ask about having the form scanned into your chart proactively. Probably not the most common thing to do but my local hospital allows it. My father filled one out when he was admitted, and fortunately I saw it because I knew it did NOT reflect his wishes. When I read his responses back to him at a later date he was not happy about it. Like you said, having it on your fridge does not guarantee the hospital will know about it.

And, having it "on file" with your hospital sadly doesn't always mean that it is up front and visible in the electronic record when you arrive (at least it wasn't in the brand my hospitals used at the time I retired) so that until someone looks for it, which might not happen immediately in the case of a life-threatening situation, the patient will be treated as if there is no advance directive.

Makes an argument for having a "DNR" necklace, or something like that to alert EMR to the situation.

Every time I have gone to a new doctor or hospital I have been given a form to signify who can receive my medical information. If you want something you can present to a doctor or hospital as proof that you have that permission, you will probably need a medical power of attorney.

I think you should contact an attorney to be sure.

In my Alzheimer's care group sessions the question about calling an ambulance if a person was near the end and had a DNR came up. As hard as it sounds it is best not to call for an ambulance. EMTs are required to do all that they can to keep someone alive until they reach the hospital. The emergency room must also do what they can. Depending on the state and the hospital to remove a patient from the equipment that is keeping them alive can require a court order. This is a two state area and one needs a court order the other does not. Some of the procedures can be painful along with only extending life for an hour to a couple of days. As the coordinator stated talk to your loved ones about your desires. She also stated that sometimes when it appears a person has died to wait before calling.

I never understood other than liability issues why the state that requires a court order for people admitted through the ER also allows family to request medical procedures to be withdrawn when the patient was a regular admission. I hope no one on here ever has to deal with this.

@chisue, the hospital WILL honor a POLST with DNR/don't intubate brought in by EMS. This is a very common situation. We still do whatever we can to make the person comfortable (e.g , pain meds). Having it on your fridge is a good idea. Please do not hesitate to call for help.

Many hospitals use Epic electronic medical records and there is a specific tab & alert if advance directives are on file, it is seen on the top of every screen; VERY visible.

@maifleur, If you have a valid DNR EMT's and ED personnel will honor it. They are NOT required to do everything to keep someone alive. Suggest getting more accurate information from the physician medical director of your local EMS agency and emergency department.

mdln it depends on your state laws also. While yours may honor it the EMTs that I have known do not. While not the Medical Director it was the overseeing Director of the EMTs that told me this. Again bi-state laws are different here.