Beth Israel joins Google to put Medical Records On Line

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and 7 other pharmacies, labs and hospitals are partnering with Google to give patients the option of putting their personal electronic medical record on line. Beth Israel's Chief Information Officer John Halamka says uploading individual files to “Google Health” will let patients access and add to their records if they see doctors, chiropractors or other providers outside BIDMC. Halamka says the records will be separate and protected from Google searches.

Google has deployed a new set of highly secure servers just for this health product. They are not co-mingling the data from search or any of their other health products with Search. There’s really a strict firewall here.

But some privacy rights groups say patients can not feel secure until state and federal governments pass stricter guidelines or protections for the use of electronic medical records.
Halamka is on the Google Health advisory council but he has not been paid in this role.