For a good part of my childhood, my mom would take me to almost monthly visits to a pediatrician who was treating my rheumatoid arthritis. She also accompanied me for more blood tests and x-rays than I have ever ordered on a child.
Though I'm sure I thanked my mother each time she took me out, I wish I could thank her again for all the concern I must have caused her. She would reassure me so I wouldn't have to worry.
Curious about the results of all those tests, I requested my records after graduating and starting my own practice. Unfortunately, I learned that the pediatrician's office had shredded my chart the month before.
In B.C., doctors are legally required to retain medical records for a minimum of seven years after the patient is last seen or after the age of 19, whichever is longer.
This will change June 1. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of B.C. has changed its requirements to reflect changes to the Limitations Act. After that date, doctors must retain medical records for a minimum of 16 years from the date last seen or the age of majority.
Adults sometimes think about their medical records as something that will always exist. But your old charts may be destroyed if sufficient time passes.
For those who have moved and haven't found a new family doctor, your old records may be gone before you have a chance to transfer them.
Your medical records belong to the physician or the facility where you have been treated. They include consultants' letters, surgical reports, lab results and other investigations in addition to the clinical notes of the physician.
Though you don't own your medical records, you have a right to the information contained within them. You should be cautious when signing off the right to share your confidential information with a third party.
The main reason medical records are destroyed beyond the legal retention limit is the amount of space required by the traditional paper chart. I've had some patients whose charts filled three file folders.
The problem of space will eventually be resolved with the widespread adoption of electronic medical records.
Dr. Davidicus Wong is a family physician at the PrimeCare Medical Centre. His Healthwise column appears regularly in this paper.
He is a regular Tuesday morning guest on Jill Krop's AM/BC talk show on BC1. You can read more about achieving your positive potential for health at davidicuswong.wordpress.com.
