Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1169964
69 CIO / HEALTH IT Former Lehigh Valley patient claims physician inappropriately accessed his medical records By Jackie Drees A former Lehigh Valley Health Network patient sued the Allen- town, Pa.-based health system over claims that an LVHN-af- filiated physician who was not treating him illegally accessed his medical records for months, e Morning Call reported Aug. 11. HHS recently cited LVHN for failing to protect confidential patient in- formation. e health department concluded its report from a May 6 investigation that found LVHN did not make changes to protect patient data despite the health system's discovery that a physician had inappro- priately accessed medical information of patient he was not treating for several months in 2017, according to the report. e HHS citation did not identify the LVHN patient whose privacy was breached, but it did note that the individual was discharged April 1, 2017, the publication reported. is is the same date that Steven Kahlon, who sued LVHN in 2018 for a privacy breach, was discharged from Lehigh Val- ley Hospital. Mr. Kahlon received a May 6 letter from HHS that stated the department investigated his complaints and found violations of state and federal regulations regarding LVHN's privacy breach. Brian Downs, an LVHN spokesman, told e Morning Call that while the health system could not explicitly explain its policies on access and sharing of patient data across its Epic EHR while the case is in litigation, Lehigh Valley Hospital has a secure review process. "LVH has an aggressive and continuous review process to ensure the appropriate caregivers are accessing medical records correctly," Mr. Downs said. "LVHN acted quickly when made aware of this situation and we remain in contact with the Department of Health on this issue." In the lawsuit, Mr. Kahlon claims Johnny Shea-Yuan Chung, MD, en- tered his Lehigh Valley Hospital room in 2017 and told Mr. Kahlon he must sign documents that would absolve his ownership of a business the two men owned together, according to the report. Mr. Kahlon alleges Dr. Chung found his hospital room by looking at his health records. Between February and June 2017, "Chung, or someone using Chung's authoriza- tion code, engaged in unauthorized access to Kahlon's EMR," on at least 12 different occasions, according to LVHN's April 24, 2018, response to Mr. Kahlon's lawsuit. Dr. Chung no longer has privileges at Lehigh Valley Hospital, and he le "during the time LVHN was investigating a patient complaint," Mr. Downs said. Dr. Chung, who was never employed by LVHN, is a plastic surgeon at Aesthetic Surgery Associates in Allentown. Both Dr. Chung and Mr. Kahlon declined e Morning Call's requests for comment. n Call: 888-416-2409 or bids@eSutures.com Contact eSutures.com today to get started!