Personal Health Records

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• Related Issues

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• Clinical Trials
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• Patient Handouts

Summary

You've probably seen your chart at your doctor's office. In fact, you may have charts at several doctors' offices. If you've been in the hospital, you have a chart there, too. These charts are your medical records. They may be on paper or electronic. To keep track of all this information, it's a good idea to keep your own personal health record.

What kind of information would you put in a personal health record? You could start with:

• Your name, birth date, blood type, and emergency contact information
• Date of last physical
• Dates and results of tests and screenings
• Major illnesses and surgeries, with dates
• A list of your medicines and supplements, the dosages, and how long you've taken them
• Any allergies
• Any chronic diseases
• Any history of illnesses in your family

Related Issues

• Creating a Personal Health Journal (Health Diary) (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
• How to Keep Your Health Information Private and Secure (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology) - PDF
• How to Read Your Radiology Report (American College of Radiology; Radiological Society of North America) Also in Spanish
• Letting Your Personal Health Information Be Used and Shared for Research (National Institutes of Health)
• Patient Access to Health Records (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
• Protecting the Privacy and Security of Your Health Information (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)

Statistics and Research

• FastStats: Electronic Medical Records/Electronic Health Records (EMRs/EHRs) (National Center for Health Statistics)
• Individuals Use of Technology to Track Health Care Charges and Costs (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
• Office-Based Physician Electronic Health Record Adoption (Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Electronic Health Records (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Health Records, Personal (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Meaningful Use (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Unintended Consequences of Data Sharing Under the Meaningful Use Program.
• Article: Enhancing the Functionalities of Personal Health Record Systems: Empirical Study Based...
• Article: Toward Personalized Care and Patient Empowerment and Perspectives on a Personal...
• Personal Health Records -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights

Children

• Does the HIPAA Privacy Rule Allow Parents the Right to See Their Children's Medical Records? (Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights)
• Viewing Clinical Notes in Your Child's Electronic Medical Record (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Electronic Health Records (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Your Medical Records (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Patient portals - an online tool for your health (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish