West Virginia e-Directive Registry Access: Common Questions

Eight organizations have now completed the three documents necessary to access the WV e-Directive Registry (Registry).  As facilities have begun to process these documents, questions have arisen.  We would like to share the answers we have given in the hope that they may clarify some issues for other organizations.

1. Who in our organization will need to have access to the Registry?

Organizations will need to determine who has a patient care need to access the Registry on an individual basis. This might include social workers, care managers, admission clerks, medical records clerks, and emergency department staff.  These are generic categories as different organizations have different names for job titles.  It might also be helpful if the administrators of these departments have access.  Remember that all shifts will need to be covered.  In short, whoever would be accessing patient medical records upon admission, while caring for a patient, or in an emergency situation should have access.    The Authorized Administrator can add other job classifications or persons if it becomes necessary at a later date.

2. Who should the Authorized Administrator be?

The Authorized Administrator should be someone in your organization (usually in Information Technology) who has the job of assigning usernames and passwords for other roles.  They would also need to be someone who deletes accounts when an employee leaves your organization.

3. Will every employee needing access have their own username and password?

Yes. Every person that accesses the Registry need to be assigned their own username and password.

4. Have you written a generic Registry policy?

Since each organization is different, we have determined that this would not be helpful.  We are suggesting that organizations start with their own Information Technology policy.  We would be happy to review any policy that is written.

5. Can we set up Registry access for our corporation as a whole?

If your organization operates in more than one location such as a hospice serving more than one county or a nursing home that is part of a chain, Registry access may be set up on a corporate level.  How that access will function depends on your corporate structure.  We would be happy to work with your corporate office.

For the most current information about the Registry or to obtain the three agreements necessary for your organization to access the Registry, visit the Center website at www.wvendoflife.org/e-Directive-Registry.