Systems and methods of managing specification, enforcement, or auditing of electronic health information access or use

• US 20070282843A1
• Filed: 04/11/2007
• Published: 12/06/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 04/11/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Medox Technologies, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Medox Exchange, Inc.
• Inventors: Beck, Michael E.
• Granted Patent: US 8,041,749 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/31 User authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/33 using certificates
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/604 Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6272 by registering files or documents with a third party
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/20 relating to practices or guidelines
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 80/00 ICT specially adapted for facilitating communication between medical practitioners or patients, e.g. for collaborative diagnosis, therapy or health monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/08 for authentication of entities cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication H04L9/32
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/10 for controlling access to devices or network resources
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/105 Multiple levels of security

Abstract

Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, related to managing specification, enforcement, or auditing of electronic health information use. In general, data characterizing a request to modify access rights to health information is received and the access rights are modified in accordance with the request, where the modifying includes modifying a property characterizing access rights of a relationship between a first user and second users, or an organization of the second users. The access rights may be independent of the health information and modification of access rights may be independent of a security of the health information.

Claims

1. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in a computer-readable media, the computer program product comprising instructions to cause data processing apparatus to perform operations comprising:

receiving data characterizing a request to modify access rights to health information, the request from a first user managing the access rights of second one or more other users to the health information; and

modifying the access rights in accordance with the request, the modifying comprising;

modifying a property characterizing the access rights of a relationship between the first user and the second users, the access rights being independent of the health information and to enable modification of access rights independent of a security of the health information.

2. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the access rights further include usage rights.

3. The computer program product of claim 2, wherein the access and usage rights comprise one or more of rights for viewing, copying, printing, or exporting the health information.

4. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the receiving and the modifying are performed by services that may interface with a user interface.

5. The computer program product of claim 4, wherein the user interface is a website.

6. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein

the health information is a secure electronic health record.

7. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the health information is a secure holding of a secure electronic health record.

8. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein

security of the secure holding differs from security of one or more other secure holdings of the secure electronic health record.

9. The computer program product of claim 7, wherein

access rights of the secure holding differ from access rights of one or more other secure holdings of the secure electronic health record.

10. The computer program product of claim 1 further comprising:

storing the modified property.

11. The computer program product of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving a request from the second users to access or use the health information at a first time later or earlier than a second time of another request, the request being approved or denied based on the modifying the property to approve or revoke access.

12. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the operations of the receiving and the modifying are performed at a server and the operations further comprise requesting from a client of at least one of the second users access of the health information and the server determining whether to grant access depending on the property characterizing the access rights of the relationship between the first user and the second users.

13. The computer program product of claim 1, wherein the relationship is stored in one or more data structures comprising relationships of user to user relationships, organization to user relationships, user to organization relationships, and organization to organization relationships, the relationships of the data structures associated with one or more attributes of access and usage rights between parties of at least some of the relationships, a combination of relationships used to determine indirect relationships, and the relationships describing a graph of relationships of the parties.

14. A computer-implemented method comprising:

receiving data characterizing a request to modify access rights to health information, the request from a first user managing the access rights of second one or more other users to the health information; and

modifying the access rights in accordance with the request, the modifying comprising;

modifying a property characterizing the access rights of a relationship between the first user and the second users, the access rights being independent of the health information and to enable modification of access rights independent of a security of the health information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the receiving and the modifying are performed by services that may interface with a user interface.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the health information is a secure holding of a secure electronic health record.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the operations of the receiving and the modifying are performed at a server and the operations further comprise requesting from a client of at least one of the second users access of the health information and the server determining whether to grant access depending on the property characterizing the access rights of the relationship between the first user and the second users.

18. A computer program product, tangibly embodied in a computer-readable media, the computer program product comprising instructions to cause data processing apparatus to perform operations comprising:

receiving data characterizing a request to modify access rights to health information, the request from a first user managing the access rights of second one or more other users to the health information; and

modifying the access rights in accordance with the request, the modifying comprising;

modifying a property characterizing the access rights of a relationship between the first user and an organization comprising the second users.

19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the receiving and the modifying are performed by services that may interface with a user interface.

20. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein the operations of the receiving and the modifying are performed at a server and the operations further comprise requesting from a client of at least one of the second users access of the health information and the server determining whether to grant access depending on the property characterizing the access rights of the relationship between the first user and the organization of the second users.