medical records and public information
Most People Never Read Their Medical Records, Despite Being Legally Entitled
April 12, 2004 -- Inside that manila folder may be the most significant story you'll ever read: Your doctor's appointment-by-appointment account of your health -- or at least the attempts to preserve it.
Yet most Americans have never read their own medical records, even though most want to, according to new research. Specifically, a survey of 4,500 adults indicates that one in three people say they are "very interested" in reading their medical records, while 43% said they were "somewhat interested."
So what's stopping them? Actually, nothing.
"Patients are legally entitled to access their own medical records whenever they want to, but many people don't realize they have this legal entitlement," says researcher Jinnet B. Fowles, PhD, of the Park Nicollet Institute in Minneapolis. "There is an assumption by patients that their medical records somehow belong to the health care system and aren't to be routinely shared with them."
Her survey, published in this week's Archives of Internal Medicine, is among the first to gauge the reasons why patients might want to review their medical records. Among the findings:
"Medical records can be a powerful motivator, reinforcer, and educator. More people should be reviewing them, and all they have to do is ask, or maybe fill out a form," Fowles tells WebMD. "But these results don't surprise me. Even among the significant minority of patients who did read their own records in the past, many didn't realize that they were allowed to.
You and Your Medical Records
Most People Never Read Their Medical Records, Despite Being Legally Entitled
April 12, 2004 -- Inside that manila folder may be the most significant story you'll ever read: Your doctor's appointment-by-appointment account of your health -- or at least the attempts to preserve it.
Yet most Americans have never read their own medical records, even though most want to, according to new research. Specifically, a survey of 4,500 adults indicates that one in three people say they are "very interested" in reading their medical records, while 43% said they were "somewhat interested."
So what's stopping them? Actually, nothing.
"Patients are legally entitled to access their own medical records whenever they want to, but many people don't realize they have this legal entitlement," says researcher Jinnet B. Fowles, PhD, of the Park Nicollet Institute in Minneapolis. "There is an assumption by patients that their medical records somehow belong to the health care system and aren't to be routinely shared with them."
Her survey, published in this week's Archives of Internal Medicine, is among the first to gauge the reasons why patients might want to review their medical records. Among the findings:
- Only one in four respondents had ever seen their own medical records. Those patients were nearly three times as likely as others to be "very interested" in getting this access.
- The most common reasons why patients wanted to read their records was to see what their doctors had written about them and to be more involved in their health -- each cited by 74% of respondents and edging out the third most popular reason, "to better understand their medical condition."
- Laboratory results were the most-sought after information, followed by doctor's notes. The least-sought information was past medications.
- Fewer that half of patients surveyed believed that their doctors would think it was "a good idea" for them to see their records.
"Medical records can be a powerful motivator, reinforcer, and educator. More people should be reviewing them, and all they have to do is ask, or maybe fill out a form," Fowles tells WebMD. "But these results don't surprise me. Even among the significant minority of patients who did read their own records in the past, many didn't realize that they were allowed to.