A Conversation on Supporting Patient and Family Access to Health Information

On April 26th, NYHealth hosted a webinar on the strategies health systems are employing to make sharing notes with patients easier and more productive.

The 21st Century CURES Act, a federal mandate that supports patients’ access to and control of their medical records, recently went into effect. Health care systems are now required to share clinical notes with patients, free of charge.

When patients have access to their own visit notes written by health care providers, they better remember what was discussed during the visit; feel more in control of their care; are more likely to take medications as prescribed; and can share notes with their caregivers.

A rapid growth in telemedicine—along with patients’ increasing desire for their own health care information, such as clinician notes and lab results—in recent years has been accelerated further by the COVID-19 pandemic. Health system innovators can seize this moment to enhance patient engagement.

Cait DesRoches, DrPH, Executive Director, OpenNotes; Lauren Bruckner, MD, PhD, Medical Director of Patient Engagement, URMedicine; and Steve O’Neill, LICSW, BCD, JD, Social Work Manager and Behavioral Health Specialist, OpenNotes, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, discussed innovative ways health systems are sharing clinical notes with patients.

See webinar recording here.

See presentation slides.

See OpenNotes resources, templates, and more information about the federal rule.