Which is more important: saving money or protecting patient privacy? In our opinion, the answer is obvious. We wouldn't want our records available to unqualified personnel.

At Hamilton Health Sciences, there is a problem waiting to happen with the privacy of patient records. The potential problem is in access to the records. Who gets to see your record on a computer screen, on your chart, or on a copy of a memo? To us, the issue is very important.

HHS does not seem to think so. In an effort to save money, HHS has been trying to replace paid workers with volunteers in some areas, such as reception or switchboard.

There are several problems with this approach. The first is simply training. But perhaps the most important has to do with the privacy of patient records. A volunteer working in a reception area has access to all kinds of information about patients.

When records are handled by regular staff, there are strict procedures in place to prevent patient records from being misused. Moreover, if something were to happen, there is an entire disciplinary procedure in place to ensure it doesn't happen again. Volunteers are not constrained by this system; there are no consequences to them should they be asked to leave.

Volunteers are an important part of any hospital and we value their work. But there are some areas in which we do not believe it is appropriate to use volunteers. Handling patient records is one of them.

Although we have expressed our concerns to management, HHS continues to place volunteers into areas which we consider to be sensitive. It seems to be a deliberate strategy; after all, volunteers are cheaper than paid staff. But there are some places where we have to draw the line; dealing with patient records is one of them.