A specific encounter may be restricted because a patient asked that it be kept confidential from some of your clinic members. Users who have the Force access on an Encounter permission can still view the restricted encounter, but they must "force access" and state the reason for the override.

A user may need access to a restricted encounter in case of emergency, or when the patient provides consent during a visit.

The fact that a user forced access to the encounter is saved in the patient's chart, with a red icon within the Recent Activity section, making it easy to see from the patient dashboard if someone forced access (refer to Reviewing recent activity).

If a user gains access to a restricted encounter, the owner of the restriction and the user who signed the encounter receive an automated and detailed inbox message. If the encounter is unsigned and associated with an appointment, the provider assigned to the appointment also receives a notification.

These notifications include information such as the user who forced access, the timing of the access, the reason for it, and a link to the restricted encounter.

Users who do not have this permission cannot force access, even in an emergency situation. In that case a message appears indicating that you do not have permission to access the encounter.

1. In the patient's chart, select the Restricted Access, Content Not Visible encounter from Start/Open > Encounters or from the Encounters section in the Summary view.

2. In the Permission denied window that appears, type a Reason for forcing access to the encounter.

3. Click Okay.

4. Enter your password and click Submit.

5. The encounter opens and an entry is added to the Recent Activity section of the chart.

You must force access to the encounter again if you navigate to a different section of the patient chart, switch to a different patient's chart, or log out.