Professional Resource: HIPAA “Calling a Client Flow Chart” Reference Poster

Reviewing the policies that protect client/patient privacy is a regular part of staff training in healthcare settings- but often, when we encounter information we’ve seen dozens (or hundreds!) of times before, we often “zone out” a bit rather than focusing in on reviewing critical information.

Our familiarity with procedures can sometimes make it difficult to engage content like this HIPAA-compliance client-contact guide with the same attention and interest that we’d devote to new information.

I believe, in line with emerging research from the field of neuroscience, that reviewing old information in new ways (like converting policy review to a visual adventure) helps engage more of the brain in the learning/reviewing process, leading to faster and more effective recall.

This printable PDF resource is designed to help with this by shifting the content from bland policy-related text to playful, humorous, visual format.

Flowchart depicting when to call a client

Suitable for staff training or as a personal reference for clinicians in private practice, this playful flow chart covers all the bases for securely contacting a client without disclosing PHI inappropriately or otherwise violating a patient or client’s confidentiality. With soft-organic lines and a few bits of humor,  your staff will be happy to refamiliarize themselves with proper procedures. Visual thinkers may benefit from seeing the information in a new format, which can help memory retention for both visual thinkers and non-visual thinkers.

Image Description for Screen Readers:

Blue background with a flow chart drawn on it. The title of the illustration is “The HIPAA-COMPLIANT GUIDE TO Calling A Client.”

If you find yourself needing to call a client, the first question to ask is if you have their number. If you don’t, find another contact method like mail, telepathy, messenger pigeon, etc. If you do have their number, call them. However, if you call them and they do not answer, only leave a message if they have given consent for you to do so. If you call and someone answers, verify that it is your client. If it is not your client, ensure that you have a release of information for the person before sharing any further information.

Illustration created by Lindsay Braman.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *