Hospitals

[Caran]

OH has just asked me how come each hospital he goes to has a big file of his notes?
For years he has been going to Gloucester hospital. But this year he has been to Cheltenham hospital a few times. Each time he has gone they have a big file of al his notes. Do they transport his notes from hospital to hospital or are his notes automatically copied to each hospital?

[sapelesam]

When an appt is booked, the outpatients look at your online file and then request your notes from where you have been treated.

[Caran]

Sapelesam, do you mean a copy or actual?

[Jackdaw33]

Actual, I believe. Your notes follow you around.

[sapelesam]

Actual notes including X-Rays etc where applicable.

[Caran]

That seem incredible, he has had appointments at both hospitals on consecutive days, there must be a heavy traffic in notes!

[Caran]

Thank you for answers.

[sapelesam]

In my local area the notes are couriered by a private company. Just what you want, some minimum wage toe-rag sitting in a layby reading your medical records.

[Caran]

Well said sapelesam.

[Mamyalynne]

Interesting, people on minimum wage are toe rags?

I should imagine the couriers simply want to get their days work done so they can get paid their pittance.

[sapelesam]

Hi Mamyalynne, nice to hear from you. I didn't say that all minimum wage earners were toe-rags. I said "some" suggesting the possibility. The main toe-rags are the employers. I choose my words carefully.

[Mamyalynne]

I didn't like the implication, I'm sure they have better things to do than to pull over and read notes - people who are unemployed get enough grief on here without adding those on low wages into the mix.

Nice to hear from you too.

[sapelesam]

I can't seem to see any implication.

[anneasquith]

These toe rags are actually giving a valuable service.

[Mamyalynne]

I have no intention of spoiling Caran's thread , she has her answer.

[sapelesam]

Yes she has, i gave it to her. I will now try to put this to bed. My local health trust gave the contract to the lowest bidder who transfers private notes in unlocked boxes by people on minimum wage. My concern is that people with nefarious intent could have access to very private information.

[silliemillie]

Could they not fax them over? Or send them via email for the other hospital to print them off?

[Peter Pedant]

he's ill a lot....

if Glous and Cheltie are the same trust then they are taken to and fro

Otherwise you get separate notes in each ( trust )
Christie when I went back 2015 had my notes from 1999 alone and nothing in between . Hope had the rest as I was careful to go only to one hospital in the city 1998, 2000 and 2012-5

They were gonna computerise all the notes in the country
but that has I think been abandoned as they couldnt erm guarantee confidentiality - they would not be able to stop porters and so on accessing them and everything else .....

BUT when I went to Torquay and got pleurisy
I showed the Tq GP my discharge notes from 2012 ( I was doing maff prep on the back of it and erm turned it over - diagnosis one side and differential calculus on the toher ) - he was able to access quite a lot from that ( NHS no ) - to wit i was really who I said I was and I had what I said I had.

so computers do march on in the NHS but slowly and silently

You are allowed to ask for and get a copy of your own hospital notes ( charge a tenner I think ) research has shown in kids you dont get better care you just get confusion between two sets of notes which are always out of kilter

[Peter Pedant]

// toe-rag sitting in a layby reading your medical records.//

valid point

medical records were always open for anyone to go in....
but they had to be physically present and to go in in personam

( limited person/reading and ltd circulation)

the problem with computerised notes is that you can put them on faccebook/internet and get a readership in millions

and the toe rag has to be able to read ( lots of Poles dont read English ) and make sense of notes that read
PDC - WMD - splocka do splocka do
and toe rags dont - they get bored easily

[B00]

Why anyone would want to read hospital notes about a random stranger is beyond me, can't imagine anyone else wanting to do that either!

I'm incredulous why they're even physically taken to different hospitals to begin what. what a silly waste of money when im sure everything can be emailed.

[Peter Pedant]

// My concern is that people with nefarious intent could have access to very private information.//
far more serious risk with computerised information
being spread around the internet

The non-med people interested in patient notes are mainly police and that is only addresses - [ for stabbings explosives and terrorism] - this info can be required as a matter of law

hospital notes let me tell you arent THAT interesting
Fifty y ago in small practices ( less than 1000) of which I was part, GPs DID withhold info from notes on request of the patient
( made continuity of care problematic)