Break-glass access

Clinicians usually see only the patients on their caseload. When someone needs a patient outside that access right now, for example to cover a session for an absent colleague, they can use break-glass access instead of waiting for an admin to change their roles.

Open a patient with break-glass access#

1. Open the patient you need. The chart says the patient is outside your access.
2. Click Get Access.
3. In the Break-glass access dialog, enter a Reason of at least 10 characters that says why you need the record.
4. Click Get Access. The chart opens, and you can view the patient for the next four hours.

After four hours the access ends on its own. If you still need the patient, ask a clinic admin to add you to the care team.

A restricted chart opens only for the staff named on it, even for people who see every patient. Anyone else gets the same Get Access prompt and goes through break-glass access with a reason.

What gets recorded#

• The patient access log records who opened the patient, when, and the reason they gave.
• The security audit log shows that break-glass access was used.
• Owners and clinic admins get a notification each time someone uses it.

Break-glass access is not available to people who already see every patient, and it requires permission to read patient charts at least for a caseload.

Turn break-glass access off#

Break-glass access is on for every new clinic. The Owner can turn it off in clinic settings: open Setup > Clinic > Organization, turn off Allow break-glass access and click Save Changes. While it is off, the Break-glass access dialog explains that your clinic has turned it off, and people who need a patient outside their access must ask an admin to change their care team assignments or roles.