The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 268 No 7188 p311-320
9 March 2002

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News summary

Patients say they would share medical records with pharmacists

Patients are willing to take responsibility for their own medical records and would be happy to share this information with pharmacists, according to research carried out for the Doctor Patient Partnership.

In a survey of 1,000 adults carried out by NOP Research, 63 per cent of respondents said that they would like to be responsible for holding their own records on an electronic smart card (even though this is not yet an option) and to produce this card when visiting their general practitioner, pharmacist or a hospital.

The findings are to be used to promote a new campaign giving patients details of how they can gain access to their medical records and the likely costs involved. Posters have been produced for display in GP surgeries and printed cards are to be given out on which patients can record details of both non-prescription and prescribed medicines. The new campaign is being supported by the Consumer Health Information Centre and the National Pharmaceutical Association.

Patients seeking access to their medical records can expect to pay £10 for a copy of fully computerised records, and no more than £50 for a copy of records held manually. They may also be charged £10 to view records, unless they are held manually and information has been added within the past 40 days.