Ordering Electronic Health Records

Order Medical Records can help you access paper and electronic medical records

Electronic health records are much more than just e-versions of traditional medical records. They are systems designed to improve collaboration between doctors at different facilities, drive patient engagement, and contribute to a better overall health care experience and outcome. Even if your doctor does not yet use electronic health records, chances are they will be converting soon. After all, any doctor who does not convert to an electronic records system by 2015 will face Medicare penalties.

You might think that if your doctor has electronic copies of your medical record, you don’t need your own copy. This is an especially tempting thought if your doctor has one of the systems that encourages patient engagement and offers you the ability to see the contents of your record, including results of lab tests, status of prescriptions, etc., right from your computer or smartphone. However, the truth is that it is always in your best interests to have your own, separate copy of your medical record.

Systems Can Crash

The number one reason to keep your own version of your electronic medical record is that your healthcare provider’s system could crash. Naturally they will have safeguards in place to help recover some or all of the data in the event of a virus or hardware failure, but are you willing to take any chances at all when it comes to your vital healthcare information? Having your own paper or digital copy of your record can help mitigate the risk of data loss and protect your information.

Old Data May Be Purged

Currently, physicians are permitted to destroy certain kinds of old medical records at preset intervals. For example, most kinds of records can be destroyed after seven years. Depending on your electronic health record platform, you may or may not be able to see old records in the system. Rather than risking the loss of data after a certain number of years, you can simply order your medical record periodically and keep copies forever.

You May Want to Opt Out of Sharing

One final reason you might want your own copy of your electronic health record is so that you can opt out of sharing programs that would enable multiple hospitals or physicians to view your record for the purposes of collaborating to provide care. To safeguard your privacy, you may decide to handle sharing your record between physicians yourself. This can be accomplished with help from Order Medical Records. We’ll contact your healthcare providers on your behalf to secure a paper or digital copy of your medical record that you can then share with new doctors at your discretion.