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. 2014 Jul-Aug;21(4):737-41.
doi: 10.1136/amiajnl-2013-002239. Epub 2013 Oct 23.

Patient access to medical records and healthcare outcomes: a systematic review

Traber Davis Giardina  1 , Shailaja Menon  2 , Danielle E Parrish  3 , Dean F Sittig  4 , Hardeep Singh  2
Affiliations

Patient access to medical records and healthcare outcomes: a systematic review

Traber Davis Giardina et al. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2014 Jul-Aug.

Abstract

Objectives: We conducted a systematic review to determine the effect of providing patients access to their medical records (electronic or paper-based) on healthcare quality, as defined by measures of safety, effectiveness, patient-centeredness, timeliness, efficiency, and equity.

Methods: Articles indexed in PubMed from January 1970 to January 2012 were reviewed. Twenty-seven English-language controlled studies were included. Outcomes were categorized as measures of effectiveness (n=19), patient-centeredness (n=16), and efficiency (n=2); no study addressed safety, timeliness, or equity.

Results: Outcomes were equivocal with respect to several aspects of effectiveness and patient-centeredness. Efficiency outcomes in terms of frequency of in-person and telephone encounters were mixed. Access to health records appeared to enhance patients' perceptions of control and reduced or had no effect on patient anxiety.

Conclusion: Although few positive findings generally favored patient access, the literature is unclear on whether providing patients access to their medical records improves quality.

Keywords: Patient Access; Personal Health Record.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Study search terms.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Study eligibility.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Flow diagrams of study report selection.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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