The My Health Record debacle and the need for trust in communications
The rush by the public to opt out of the Australia government’s digital health record program is a reminder for crisis managers and PR professionals that effective communication demands a framework of trust, writes Issue Outcomes’ Tony Jacques.
It’s no secret that citizens don’t trust governments. Yet that lack of trust has seldom been so manifestly evident as when the Australian Government solemnly promised to safeguard the nation’s most intimate and personal health data.
The public rarely get the chance to exercise their distrust of government – except in the political framework of an election. But that opportunity arose recently with the start of a three-month period for people to opt out of My Health Record, a centralised registry of personal healthcare information designed to improve healthcare through better access to data by primary providers and researchers.
