March 2023
Every day we’re a step closer to a completely digital and shareable electronic health record (EHR). This increasing availability to timely and detailed information is critical to keeping our patients engaged and clinicians informed for optimal health outcomes (5 positives to sharing clinical notes with your patients).
One of the drivers of EHR accessibility are national policies like the 21st Century Cures Act (Cures Act). Though the Cures Act has many facets, one of its most defining is the prohibiting of information blocking, a practice that discourages, prevents or interferes with access to electronic health information.
In 2020, the Cures Act Final Rule by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology outlined specific exceptions for information blocking, including when the immediate sharing of results could create more harm to the patient than good. Outside of the specified guardrails, much of the medical record is expected to be released to the patient in near real time, especially items like test results and physician notes.
Patients have always had the right to view their medical records at any time (barring any limited state law exceptions, like psychotherapy notes), but this traditionally involved submitting requests to Health Information Management for a copy of the record, which could take days. Now in the digital age, the expectation has grown to provide patients immediate access. (Read this article, “Perspectives of Patients About Immediate Access to Test Results Through an Online Patient Portal” to learn more). These changes validate that the medical record truly belongs to the patient. To align with this, our documentation should reflect how we are partnering with our patients in their care.
For information on how Houston Methodist is meeting this obligation to our patients, see our Cures Act intranet page: 21st Century Cures Act | Houston Methodist.
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