2018 Volume 55 Issue 2 Pages 79-87
The Act on the Protection of Personal Information came into full force in April 2005, allowing medical facilities to handle personal information, but what steps should be taken when handling personal information depends on each medical facility. The aim of the current study was to ascertain the current state of implementation of systems governing the use and protection of personal information by medical facilities. Departments responsible for protecting personal information （departments coordinating those efforts） in municipal hospitals were surveyed nationwide. When asked about the number of personnel who were involved in work related to protection of patients’ personal information, over 40% of “small and medium-sized hospitals” and “large hospitals” answered that “personnel are appropriately allocated” to protect personal information. Thus, “small and medium-sized hospitals” and “large hospitals” differed little. When asked whether patients’ medical information was disclosed to other facilities or study groups via a computer network, over 60% of small and medium-sized hospitals answered that they “do not” disclose such information, while close to 60% of large hospitals answered that they “do” disclose such information. Results revealed substantial differences in the use of personal information on a computer network depending on the size of the municipal hospital.
