How would you handle a patient who wants to review and edit their information after submitting forms?

• A. Deny any changes and lock the record.
• B. Require a new in-person verification only.
• C. Provide access to a review/edit screen, allow changes if permitted, require re-authorization or re-signature for sensitive data changes, update the EHR.
• D. Delete the previously submitted data.

Answer: (C)

Patients should be able to review and correct their information through a secure, patient-facing edit workflow. This means providing a review/edit screen where permissible fields can be updated, while keeping strict controls on what can be changed by the patient. When a patient attempts changes, the system should require re-authentication or a re-signature for sensitive data (like demographics, contact info that affects billing, or consent-related items) to ensure the change is intentional and properly authorized. Once changes are made and approved, the EHR should be updated so the official record reflects the new information, with an audit trail showing who changed what and when.

This approach preserves patient autonomy and data accuracy while maintaining security and compliance. Denying changes, locking the record, or deleting data would break trust and corrupt the record, and requiring only in-person verification is often impractical and insufficient for timely updates.