The following excerpts are courtesy of NSO Risk Advisor -August, 1999.
Hospitals own hospital records and physicians own their office records.
Yet many courts have granted patients the right to learn the details of their medical treatment. After you get permission to show the patient the chart, stay with him while he reads it. Help interpret abbreviations and jargon and explain that changing anything would be illegal. Invite the patient to show you any mistaken information, offer to answer questions, and encourage him to write down questions for the physician. Finally, observe your patient's response and offer calm, professional explanations about what's in the record.