Guest guest Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 KathyHave you spoken to the office manager. If that does not work I would call and ask to have the doctor or his nurse call you. You have the right to copies of your records. Kill them with kindness when you speak to them. I hope you dont have to get a lawyer for such a small task.KateOn Sun, Jan 3, 2010 at 10:07 AM, KATHYINBK <kathyinbk@...> wrote: i am having problems getting my surgeon's office to release my x-rays. does anyone have some advice? do i need to get a lawyer involved? their office keeps telling me they have been archived. i don't believe them, since i was an active patient with ongoing care. -- KATE TRUDO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 i am having problem getting my surgeon's office to release my X-rays. does anyone have some advice? they keep telling me that they are archived. i don't believe them, since i was an active patient with ongoing care. do i need to get a lawyer involved? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Excellent advice. From: Kirkaldie <.Kirkaldie@...>Subject: Re: [ ] med records Received: Sunday, January 3, 2010, 8:44 AM Kathy, Oh Archived, it seems more and more offices do that and far more quickly than we think. Then usually there is cost involved getting them released, or found, however you look at it. For those of you in active care with a surgeon, ask everytime x-rays are taken for copies, get them on CD, or another hard copy. My doc's used me as a teaching case, and my X-rays. CT scans, MRI's moved back and forth between them, and poof were gone. Thankfully I had copies. Also know these doc's can move offices, and to different practices, and your x-rays can be left with the old practice, and that can be a nightmare to get them. My bet is probably most things get archived after three years or so. What does archived mean, stored somewhere else, or destroyed, or put onto CD, and stored off site. Another suggestion is get to be pals with your doc's assistant, send thank you notes, believe me it helps, if they are fond of you, things get found, they help you out. I was applying for life insurance, and needed my medical records, and the office charged 35 bucks to me to get them for my application, I called Lee, Dr. Kumar's assistant, and she just copied them for me at no cost. I've found that a bit of praise to office staff, and believe me they get far too little of it, works in your behalf, good to have them on your side, so a thank you note here or there, a plate of cookies, some candy, works, did for me. Kathy i'd send the assistant a flowery note, thanking her upfront for her help in this matter, before jumping on the" get it done" bandwagon, see if it helps. Ask what could be done to find them, and how you could help in the process. Sometimes you will get put off cause of time factors, takes time and energy to find these things, and they are more likely to do it for someone they like, than someone who yells at them. I give people a chance to be helpful before I slam them, and believe me I slam people when necessary. You are intitled to your x-rays, they are needed, so get this office to tell you just what archived means for that office, on CD, filed off site, or destroyed. Know I never got my past x-rays, surgical notes, anything from UCSF, after nearly 30 years, and archived, I got nothing, and still managed to have surgery, would have been nice to have them, but surgery still happened without them. But, from this moment on, ask for copies of everything, and keep your own file, afterall it's to your benefit, even if there is cost involved. Those of you having surgery, start a binder with everything concerning your surgery, office notes, surgical notes, authorizations, insurance approvals, billing, so it all together in one place. There will be glitches, and if everything is together, it's easy. Also if you talk to anyone, from the insurance company, the hospital, dr's offices, write who you spoke with name down, first and last, helps when anything goes wrong. Hope this helps. Colorado Springs [ ] med records i am having problem getting my surgeon's office to release my X-rays. does anyone have some advice? they keep telling me that they are archived. i don't believe them, since i was an active patient with ongoing care. do i need to get a lawyer involved? The new Internet Explorer® 8 - Faster, safer, easier. Optimized for Get it Now for Free! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 Kathy -- I see you got some responses at the other group. Let me just add, in case no one else has said this yet, that your right to your medical records is dependent on your jurisdiction. In the US, it's best to check the state statutes to make sure you are on solid ground. If you are, you can get a lawyer, or you can just keep on insisting that the doctor's office release the records. Whether or not your state requires this, it is probably a good idea to submit a formal written request. I think you are right to be skeptical about their excuses. > > i am having problems getting my surgeon's office to release my x-rays. does anyone have some advice? do i need to get a lawyer involved? their office keeps telling me they have been archived. i don't believe them, since i was an active patient with ongoing care. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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