While patient access to health records was granted in 2002 via the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), a new initiative is taking patient access to the next level. For the first time, OpenNotes—a healthcare transparency movement that gives patients access to their healthcare providers’ notes—has been incorporated across an entire geographical region, Clinical Innovation + Technology reports. More than one million patients in Oregon and Southwest Washington can now access their providers’ notes electronically.
Originally launched in 2010 at three separate facilities—Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Geisinger Health System in Danville, Pennsylvania, and Harborview Medical Center in Seattle—OpenNotes produced positive results from the onset. U.S. News & World Report shared the results of the yearlong study, in which 105 physicians participated, that was conducted at each facility.
- 99 percent of patients said they want continued access to their full charts
- 85 percent stated records access would be a factor in how they selected future providers
- Two-thirds were more likely to take prescribed medications after a year of OpenNotes participation
- Less than 10 percent of physicians reported patients took up more of their time with questions
Initially, some physicians who took part in the study worried OpenNotes would cause work delays and scare or confuse patients. But program cofounder Tom Delbanco, MD, stated he was “astounded by the enthusiasm” and amazed at the low impact OpenNotes had on physicians, though some clinicians said they had to slightly alter the way they documented patient encounters.
To date, more than two million patients nationwide are utilizing OpenNotes.
