Communicating health research (62) Responses to Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4 and Q5 (2) Adoption of patient access to medical records (2)

22 September, 2022

"In reality, however, such policy-making proposals are often ignored, and the mass media do not even attempt to report on them. On the other hand, when the wind as the possibility of the proposal is realised blows, the mass media pick up the proposal as news, and policymakers may react sensitively to that wind." [Hajime Takeuchi, Japan: https://www.hifa.org/dgroups-rss/communicating-health-research-58-respon... ]

Hajime's comments "when the wind of the possibility of the proposal blows the mass media pick up the proposal as news, and policy makers may react sensitively to that wind" has rung through during our 30 year professional struggle to release doctor's grip on their medical notes.

The first wind was the murder of over 200 patients by a family doctor who covered his tracks by altering his medical records to cover his tracks about false diagnoses of causes of death. The second has been the covid19 pandemic.

The first wind forced the attention of the medical regulatory body, press and government, the second has done so too. Patient access to records is an objective of Europe, the G7 countries, China and, I am sure, of many other countries but we started to implement the change in the early 1990's.

Richard

HIFA profile: Richard Fitton is a retired family doctor - GP. Professional interests: Health literacy, patient partnership of trust and implementation of healthcare with professionals, family and public involvement in the prevention of modern lifestyle diseases, patients using access to professional records to overcome confidentiality barriers to care, patients as part of the policing of the use of their patient data Email address: richardpeterfitton7 AT gmail.com