What does PHR mean in HEALTHCARE

A Personal Health Record (PHR) is an electronic record of a patient's medical history maintained by individual patients, or their surrogates. This includes data such as treatments received, medications prescribed, and test results.

PHRs have become increasingly important as they allow for increased access to quality care and help reduce costs associated with treating illnesses or injuries. Additionally, PHRs can provide improved accuracy regarding a patient's medical history and lead to better decisions regarding their healthcare needs.

The individual patient or their surrogate has control over who has access to the PHR. They are able to give permission to healthcare providers and others to view specific information on the record such as laboratory test results or medication dosages.

A PHR may contain various types of health data including diagnoses, doctor's visits and prescriptions, immunizations, allergies and test results. Additionally, some systems may allow individuals to track lifestyle choices such as diet or physical activity levels.

Security protocols for protecting personal health information stored in a PHR vary from system to system but typically include firewall protection as well as encryption devices used to store sensitive data like credit card numbers or Social Security Numbers. Access must be approved by the user before any data can be accessed which helps ensure HIPAA compliance (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act).