California Western Dean Joins Electronic Health Records Speakers Program
Dean Steven R. Smith discusses issues surrounding the transition to digitized health records by 2014

SAN DIEGO, February 18, 2010 - On Saturday, February 20, California Western School of Law Dean Steven R. Smith serves on a panel of distinguished scholars and professionals, entitled "Your Medical Records Online: The Promises and Pitfalls." The panel will explore the technical, ethical, and societal implications of the President Obama's goal for every American to have an electronic health record by 2014. The panel is part of the Science Matters program sponsored by the California Science Center. 

Smith, the panel's voice on the legal implications of the digital transition, will be joined by Claire Pomeroy, vice chancellor for Human Health Services and dean of the School of Medicine at the University of California, Davis; Paul Tang, an internist and vice president and chief medical information officer at the Palo Alto Medical Foundation; and Nadereh Pourat, director of research planning at the University of California, Los Angeles Center for Health Policy Research.

Conan Nolan, a reporter from NBC 4 in Los Angeles, will moderate the discussion.

Creative Problem Solving During Technology Transitions
As emerging issues in law and technology present themselves, a creative approach to problem solving is a necessary skill to employ. Transitioning to electronic health records presents new legal challenges on the maintenance of patient confidentiality and information privacy.

While these challenges are not new to health care in general, the electronic storage of and access to health records provide new challenges yet to be addressed by the law.

Smith's extensive research in medicine and law provide him with the knowledge, skills, and perspective to effectively articulate the ethical and legal concerns of this aggressive call to create an EHR for every American within the next four years. 

Science Matters at the California Science Center
"Your Medical Records Online: The Promises and Pitfalls" is part of Science Matters, the California Science Center's speakers program for science and technology issues that are of interest to the public.

The Science Matters panel discussion will be held from 1:00 to 2:40 p.m. at the California Science Center, 700 State Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90037. It is free and open to the public.

California Science Center
The California Science Center is a public-private partnership between the State of California and the California Science Center Foundation. Its mission is to "stimulate curiosity and inspire science learning in everyone by creating fun, memorable experiences, because we value science as an indispensable tool for understanding our world, accessibility and inclusiveness, and enriching people's lives."