Personal Statment and HIPPA ?

[jbc333]

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Hello!

I was wondering, would it be considered a HIPPA violation to mention the name of a family member in your personal statement? Ex. Uncle Joe. Would it be better to change the name and write something like Uncle "John" ? Or maybe just say my uncle? I'm not exactly describing the details of his care, I'm just mentioning what I saw growing up as he has a disability, so it seems like a blurred line...

 

[KnightDoc]

Hello!

I was wondering, would it be considered a HIPPA violation to mention the name of a family member in your personal statement? Ex. Uncle Joe. Would it be better to change the name and write something like Uncle "John" ? Or maybe just say my uncle? I'm not exactly describing the details of his care, I'm just mentioning what I saw growing up as he has a disability, so it seems like a blurred line...

Yeah. It's not a blurred line. You don't provide any details that could lead someone to being able to identify the individual. You could just say it's a relative (or, not even mention that if it isn't relevant to the rest of your story), and then given them a pseudonym, just like anyone else!

 

[LizzyM]

This has nothing to do with HIPAA. It does have to do with your uncle's right to privacy. If he's okay with having you mention him in your personal statement, then saying "I noticed that my uncle..." or " I noticed that my Uncle Joe..." would in no way be an invasion of privacy or raise any eyebrows.

 

[Princeton Medical Student]

Unless you bill patients including your uncle HIPAA doesn’t apply.