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Find policies that pertain to IUP student health or health-related issues:

Prematriculation Immunization Requirement

Meningitis Vaccination Requirement

IUP Communicable Disease Policy

Patient Rights and Responsibilities

Confidentiality and Privacy Statement

International Student Health Insurance Policy

Prematriculation Immunization Requirement (Including Meningitis Vaccination Requirement for Residential Students)

No physical exam is required to attend IUP. IUP requires students to complete a Health History questionnaire upon entering college, and this information is kept on file electronically in the Health Service throughout the student's term at IUP, as well as for at least seven years after graduation. IUP also requires immunization dates for all new freshmen and transfer students. This includes the following vaccines: measles, mumps, rubella, tetanus-toxoid, diphtheria, and polio. (See additional information below regarding immunization requirements for students living in university-owned residences.) Students will be asked to submit information regarding immunization history online via a link provided by the Health Service.

Individuals who were born after 1956 should receive a measles immunization before entering college. This may be a second measles immunization, or the first vaccine within six months of entering college. A tetanus immunization must also be updated every 10 years.

The Health Service will provide new students with a link on which to document health history and immunization information. Questions or requests for information about medical or religious exemptions to this policy should be directed to the university Health Service at 724-357-6475.

Meningococcal Meningitis Vaccination

Additionally, the College and University Student Vaccination Act requires that all students, before moving into university-owned and -operated residence halls or apartments, must receive the vaccination for meningococcal meningitis or sign a document stating that the student has chosen to be exempted from receiving the vaccination for religious or other reasons. All residents are required to sign an online document with their housing contract before moving into campus rooms/apartments stating that they are in compliance with the law. The vaccination required is the A,C,Y,W-135 vaccine. IUP recommends that residents have the vaccination before arrival on campus. Evidence of vaccination can be documented on the link provided by the university Health Service.

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Patient Bill of Rights

You, as a patient, and the IUP Health Service's staff have specific rights and responsibilities in our relationship.

Your rights include the following:

1. The right to humane care and treatment. You will be treated with respect, consideration, and dignity. You can expect that your personal convictions and beliefs will be taken into account when you seek help, and that the conviction of the provider will not adversely affect your right to rational and appropriate care.
2. The right to accurate information, to the extent known, concerning diagnosis of an illness or health-related condition. This will include appropriate alternatives to care at the health center when requested.
3. The right to participate in decisions that are made regarding your health and treatment.
4. The right to know who is counseling, caring for, or treating you. The provider's name and professional qualifications should be visible or stated on introduction.
5. The right to request a change in providers without discrimination.
6. The right to information regarding the scope and availability of services.
7. The right to information regarding fees for service, particularly notification as to what services may involve additional charges.
8. The right to confidentiality of your records as directed by federal law.
9. The right to be informed of any research aspect of your care and the right to refuse to participate. Such refusal will not jeopardize your access to medical care and treatment.

Your responsibilities include the following:

1. Providing full information about your illness or problem to allow proper evaluation and treatment, including completion of the Student Health Form and Immunization Certificate.
2. Asking sufficient questions to ensure appropriate understanding of your illness or problem, as well as the health professional's recommendations for continuing care. If you find the care or course of treatment unacceptable for any reason, it should be discussed with the Health Service staff.
3. Showing courtesy and respect to health personnel and other patients.
4. Not lending your I-Card to others. It may lead to entries in the wrong medical chart or errors in treatment.
5. Returning for follow-up visits as advised or notifying the medical provider of your decision to seek care elsewhere or in another manner.
6. If you are unable to keep an appointment or if you are late, cancel or reschedule your appointment as far in advance as possible so that the time may be given to someone else.
7. Not giving medication prescribed for you to others.
8. Communicating with your health provider if your condition worsens or does not follow the expected course.

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Confidentiality and Privacy

Notice of privacy practices effective April 14, 2003 (last updated, June 10, 2008). Reviewed annually.

ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø
Health Service
Center for Health and Well-Being

Indiana, PA 15705
724-357-6475
IUP Health Service

Health-Inquiry@iup.edu

As members of both the higher education and healthcare communities, the Health Service has a unique obligation to respect the privacy of your health care record. Records at the Health Service are governed by the Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). The staff at University Health Service will also voluntarily use the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to guide the standards used regarding the privacy of your medical information. Nothing herein contained shall be construed as an admission or representation that IUP's Health Service is a covered entity under HIPAA.

The Health Service employs physicians that are a part of an Organized Health Care Arrangement (OHCA) with Indiana Regional Medical Center (IRMC). An OHCA is a clinically integrated setting in which individuals typically receive health care from more than one healthcare provider or an organized system of health care in which more than one healthcare provider participates. If a physician provides care to you at IRMC, your protected health information will be used or disclosed according to the medical center's Joint Notice of Medical Practices. IUP has agreed with IRMC, as permitted by law, to share your protected health information for purposes of treatment, payment, or healthcare operations. This enables us to better address your healthcare needs.

This notice describes how information about you may be used and disclosed and how you can get access to this information. Please review it carefully.

Who Will Follow This Notice?

All IUP Health Service personnel, including student employees.

Our Pledge Regarding Health Information

The Health Service (HS) understands that medical information about you and your health is personal. HS is committed to protecting medical information about you. HS creates a record of the care and services you receive. The Health Service needs this record to provide high-quality care and to comply with certain legal requirements or regulations guiding medical practice in the Commonwealth of ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø. This notice applies to all of the records of your care generated by Health Service personnel.

This notice will tell you about the ways in which the Health Service may use and disclose medical information about you. The Health Service also describes your rights and certain obligations regarding the use and disclosure of medical information.

The Health Service is required to:

• Make sure that medical information that identifies you is kept private
• Give you access to this notice of Health Service legal duties and privacy practices with respect to medical information about you
• Follow the terms of the notice that is currently in effect

Understanding Your Health Record/Information

While you are a student at ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø, the Health Service is one of your health care providers. Each time you visit the Health Service, a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains your health history, symptoms, examination and test results, diagnoses, treatment, and a plan for future care of treatment. This information, often referred to as your health or medical record, serves as:

• A basis for planning your care and treatment
• A means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to your care
• A legal document describing the care you received
• A means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed were actually provided
• A tool for educating health professionals
• A source of data quality control
• A source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the nation
• A source of data for facility planning and marketing
• A tool with which the health center can assess and continually work to improve the care rendered and the outcomes achieved

Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to:

• Ensure its accuracy
• Better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your health information
• Make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others

How IUP's Health Service May Use and Disclose Medical Information About You

The Health Service will use your health information for treatment. For example: Information obtained by a nurse, clinician (a physician, nurse practitioner, registered nurse), or other member of your health care team will be recorded in your medical record and used to determine the course of treatment that should work best for you. Your clinician will document in your record his or her expectations of the members of your health care team. Members of your health care team will then record the actions they took and their observations. In that way, the clinician will know how you are responding to treatment. Clinicians within the Health Service also may share health information about you in order to coordinate the different things you need, such as prescriptions, lab work, and x-rays. If Health Service staff refers you to another clinician or hospital, information regarding your visit may be shared with these health care providers.

The Health Service will use your health information for payment. For example: the IUP Health Service may bill your student account for services you receive during your visit. You are obligated to pay for these services in accordance with policies and procedures established by Student Accounts Receivable.

The Health Service will use your health information for regular health care operations. For example: Members of the clinical or administrative staff may use information in your health record to assess the care and outcomes in your case and others like it. This information will then be used in an effort to continually improve the quality and effectiveness of the health care and service we provide. The health center may use health information to review our treatment and services and to evaluate the performance of our staff in caring for you.

The Health Service may use your health information with designated business associates. There are some services provided in our organization through contracts with business associates, such as laboratories. When these services are contracted, the Health Service may disclose your health information so that these business associates can perform the job we have asked them to do. The health center asks that all of its business associates have the highest standards when protecting the privacy of your health information.

The Health Service may use and disclose health information to contact you as a reminder that you have an appointment for treatment or medical care.

The Health Service may use and disclose health information to tell you about or recommend possible treatment options or alternatives that may be of interest to you.

The Health Service may use and disclose information in life-threatening/extreme emergency situations. We may use or disclose health information to notify, or assist in notifying, a family member, personal representative, or another person responsible for your care, your location, and general condition. We may release health information about you to a friend or family member who is involved in your health care. In addition, we may disclose health information about you to an organization assisting in a disaster-relief effort, so that your family can be notified about your condition, status, and location. You have the opportunity to agree to, prohibit, or restrict the use or disclosure of health information to these individuals.

Under certain circumstances, the Health Service may use and disclose health information about you for research purposes. For example, a research project may involve comparing the health and recovery of all patients who receive one medication to those who receive another, for the same condition. All research projects are subject to a special approval process. This process evaluates a proposed research project and its use of health information, trying to balance the research needs with patients' needs for privacy of their health information. Before the health center uses or discloses health information for research, the project will have been approved through this research approval process.

The Health Service will disclose health information about you when required to do so by federal, state, or local law.

The Health Service may use and disclose health information about you when necessary to prevent a serious threat to your health and safety or the health and safety of the public or another person. Any disclosure, however, would only be to someone able to help prevent that threat.

The Health Service may disclose health information to a coroner or medical examiner. This may be necessary, for example, to identify a deceased person or to determine the cause of death. The health center may also disclose medical information about patients of the university's Health Service to funeral directors as necessary to carry out their duties.

The Health Service may disclose health information about you for public health activities. These activities generally include the following:

• To prevent or control disease, injury, or disability
• To report births and deaths
• To report child abuse or neglect
• To report reactions to medications or problems with products
• To notify people of recalls of products they may be using
• To notify a person who may have been exposed to a disease or may be at risk for contracting or spreading a disease or condition
• To notify the appropriate government authority if we believe a patient has been the victim of abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. We will only make this disclosure if you agree or when required or authorized by law.

The Health Service may disclose health information to a health oversight agency for activities authorized by law. These oversight activities include, for example, audits, investigations, inspections, and licensure. These activities are necessary for the government to monitor the health care system, government programs, and compliance with civil rights laws.

If you are a member of the United States armed forces or foreign military personnel, the Health Service may disclose health information about you. If requested by military command authorities to assure the proper execution of the military mission, if the appropriate military authority has published a notice in the Federal Register with the following information, personal health information may be released:

1. Appropriate military command authorities or the appropriate foreign military authority, and
2. Purposes for which the protected health information may be issued or disclosed

The Health Service may disclose health information to the extent authorized by and to the extent necessary to comply with laws relating to workers' compensation or other similar programs established by law.

In connection with a lawsuit or a dispute, the Health Service may disclose health information about you in response to a court or administrative order. We may also disclose medical information about you in response to a subpoena, discovery request, or other lawful process by someone else involved in the dispute. We may use and disclose health information in defending or asserting a lawsuit involving your treatment at the Health Service.

We may disclose health information if asked to do so by a law enforcement official:

• In response to a court order, subpoena, warrant, summons, or similar process
• To identify or locate a suspect, fugitive, material witness, or missing person
• About the victim of a crime if, under certain limited circumstances, the health center is unable to obtain the person's agreement
• About a death we believe may be the result of criminal conduct
• About criminal conduct at the university's Health Service
• In emergency circumstances to report a crime, the location of the crime or victims, or the identity, description, or location of the person who committed the crime.

The Health Service may disclose health information about you to authorized federal officials for intelligence, counterintelligence, and other national security activities authorized by law.

The Health Service may disclose health information about you to authorized federal officials, so they may provide protection to the President of the United States, other authorized persons, or foreign heads of state, or to conduct special investigations.

If you are an inmate of a correctional institution or under the custody of a law enforcement official, the Health Service may disclose health information about you to the correctional institution or law enforcement official. This disclosure would be necessary (1) for the institution to provide you with health care, (2) to protect your health and safety or the health and safety of others, and (3) for the safety and security of the correctional institutions.

Your Rights Regarding Medical Information About You

You have the following rights regarding health information the health center maintains about you:

Right to Inspect and Copy. You have the right to inspect and copy health information that may be used to make decisions about your care. Usually, this includes medical and billing records (IUP's Health Service does not offer third-party billing). To inspect and copy health information that may be used to make decisions about you, you must submit your request in writing to the university Health Service Medical Records Office. If you request a copy of the information, the Health Service may charge a fee for the costs of copying, mailing, or other supplies associated with your request.

The Health Service may deny your request to inspect and copy in certain very limited circumstances. If you are denied access to health information, you may request that the denial be reviewed. Another licensed health care professional chosen by the Health Service will review your request and the denial. The person conducting the review will not be the person who denied your request.

Right to Amend. If you feel that health information the Health Service has about you is incorrect or incomplete, you may ask to amend the information. You have the right to request an amendment for as long as the information is kept by or for the Health Service. To request an amendment, your request must be made in writing and submitted to the university Health Service Medical Records Office. In addition, you must provide a reason that supports your request. The Health Service may deny your request for an amendment if it is not in writing or does not include a reason to support the request. In addition, the Health Service may deny your request if you ask us to amend information that:

• Was not created by the Health Service, unless the person or entity that created the information is no longer available to make the amendment
• Is not part of the health information kept by or for the university Health Service
• Is not part of the information that you would be permitted to inspect and copy
• Is accurate and complete

Right to an Accounting of Disclosures. You have the right to request an “accounting of disclosures.” This is a list of the disclosures made of health information about you. This list will not include disclosures the health center made to you; disclosures made for the purposes of treatment, payment, or our operations; or those authorized by you.

To request this list or accounting of disclosures, you must submit your request in writing to the university Health Service Medical Records Office. Your request must state a time period, which may not be longer than seven years and may not include dates before April 14, 2003. Your request should indicate in what form you want the list (for example, on paper, electronically, etc.). This first list you request within a twelve-month period will be free. For additional lists, the Health Service may charge you for the cost of providing the list. The Health Service will notify you of the cost involved, and you may choose to withdraw or modify your request at that time, before any costs are incurred.

Right to Request Restrictions. You have the right to request a restriction or limitation on the health information disclosed about you for treatment, payment, or health care operations. The Health Service is not required to agree to your request. To request restrictions, you must make your request in writing to the university Health Service Medical Records Office. In your request, you must state (1) what information you want to limit; (2) whether you want to limit our use, disclosure, or both; and (3) to whom you want the limits to apply—for example, disclosure to your spouse.

Right to Request Confidential Communications. You have the right to request that the Health Service communicate with you about medical matters in a certain way or at a certain location. For example, you can ask that the Health Service only contact you at work or by mail.

To request confidential communications, you must make your request in writing to the university Health Service Medical Records Office. The Health Service will not ask you the reason for your request. The Health Service will accommodate all reasonable requests. Your request must specify how or where you wish to be contacted.

Right to a Paper Copy of This Notice. You have the right to a paper copy of this notice. You may ask the Health Service to give you a copy of this notice at any time. Even if you have agreed to receive this notice electronically, you are still entitled to a paper copy of this notice. To obtain a paper copy of this notice, you may stop by the university Health Service Medical Records Office.

Changes To This Notice

The IUP Health Service reserves the right to change this notice. The Health Service reserves the right to make the revised or changed notice effective for medical information we already have about you as well as any information received in the future. The Health Service will post a copy of the current notice on the Health Service website. This notice will contain on the first page, in the top right-hand corner, the effective date. In addition, each time you register at the Health Service for treatment or health care services, a copy of this notice will be available to you.

Complaints

If you believe your privacy rights have been violated, you may file a complaint with ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø or with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. To file a complaint with ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø, contact the ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø privacy officer at 724-357-6475 or by mail at: Chief Privacy Officer, ºÚÁϳԹÏÍø, c/o 901 Maple Street, Indiana, PA 15705. All complaints must be submitted in writing. You will not be penalized for filing a complaint.

Other Uses of Health Information

Other uses and disclosures of medical information not covered by this notice or the laws that apply to us will be made only with written permission. If you provide permission to use or disclose health information about you, you may revoke that permission, in writing, at any time. If you revoke your permission, the Health Service will no longer use or disclose medical information about you for the reasons covered by your written authorization. You understand that the Health Service is unable to take back any disclosures already made with your permission, and that the Health Service is required to retain our records of the care that was provided to you.

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