If we are going to go to electronic medical records, then we should have access
to our own damn records.
When my mother was in the hospital, I could never find the Doctor, so I would
just read her charts. Then the nurse runs up and tells me I can't look at
them. She hides them behind the nurses station.
Why? If I want to look at my own records, they won't let you. If they are my records,
don't I have a right to read them, check out my own care. Do my own research.
If we make the records electronic, then I want to be able to go online and check out
my own medical records. Make sure they didn't screw something up, or just want
to know how your surgery went, since you are usually asleep when they do surgery.
I have never understood why they deny you the records. The bullshit about how
we can't understand the charts. Well, I will go look it up. When my mother was
in the hospital( she had open heart surgery), and then she had a stroke, and then
she caught phenomia, and then a yeast infection. and then her heart got weak, and
then she died.
I mean, during all that, would it of killed the nurses to let me read her chart.
They are like " We will call the Doctor, it might be about 3 hours"
I'm like "Don't bother, I will just read the charts, and notes, I can figure
it out, really."
"No, we can't let you do that."
So, if we are going to have electronic records, let's add a rule, where
we the actual patient looks at their own records. It is just plain common
sense. We should be in control of our own medical care, and that includes
being completely informed, which means looking at all our own medical
records.
I am not allowed to look at my own records, and yes my mother did
give me permission to look at her records. They still wouldn't let
me. And when my daughter was an infant, I had to sneak looks. sometimes
a nurse would let me, but she warned if a Doctor came by, to shut the book.
I just don't get it, do we give up our civil rights when we enter the ER?
I don't think so, they make you sign hundreds of pieces of paper.