This integration of Electronic Health Record (EHR) systems means that CAPS and Student Health Services (SHS) will now be accessing and managing your health records on a single platform. Prior to this change, records were housed on separate platforms. This decision was informed strongly by safety, privacy, and a focus on more comprehensive care for students. Students will now be able to access their information regarding appointments and care from CAPS and SHS within the same portal.
Clinicians in Psychiatry, Social Work Services, and the Alcohol & Drug Program (all housed within Student Health) will continue to be able to see your notes as they always have. If you are seeing another provider at SHS (e.g., your Primary Care Physician- PCP), they will require special permissions which are tracked and monitored. A reason to view your records will need to be documented as it pertains to your care. There are some PCPs that prescribe antidepressants, for example, and would benefit from being able to see if you are working with anyone at CAPS.
Clinicians at CAPS will be able to see your medical records but this will require special permissions which are tracked and monitored. Providers are bound by professional standards of conduct and will only view your medical records as they pertain to your mental health care. They much also document the reason for accessing this information.
Yes, you can request your visits notes be blocked from other departments from seeing your record. You can speak with your provider about the process.
For many years, CAPS and Student Health have had separate EHR systems, yet were able to log in to each other's records when there was an appropriate reason in terms of collaborative care. Having two separate records holding vital health information meant that practitioners were not always viewing the most updated or the full context of those health visits or records. By merging EHRs, Student Health and CAPS clinicians will more easily share information in a move to improve care and communication.
Nothing will be changing in terms of the ethical and professional bounds of privacy and confidenatiality when it comes to your records. However, if you have questions or concerns, please reach out to Director of CAPS, Dr. Brian Olowude (bolowude@ucsb.edu) or Executive Director of Student Health, Dr. Vejas Skripkus (vskripkus@ucsb.edu).
No, CAPS and Student Health are remaining separate departments with positive working and collaborative processes.
More information about CAPS: https://caps.sa.ucsb.edu/ and more information about Student Health: https://studenthealth.sa.ucsb.edu/
Your client portal will be at myhealth.ucsb.edu. This is where you will access records from CAPS and Student Health.
The integration go-live date is scheduled for March 20, 2023. Beginning on March 17 at 6pm, the CAPS and Student Health systems may be inaccessible to the public for a period of time. Records should be available by 10am on March 18, 2023. If you have any concerns about upcoming appointments, please reach out directly to your provider.