Vol. 547 No. 3
256 Mr. G. Reynolds asked the Minister for Health and Children if a patient, private or public, should be entitled to examine their medical file if the person requests this information from a general practitioner; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3668/02]
Patient centred care is at the heart of the national health strategy and patient access to information about their care is an important aspect of this approach.
All patients have a qualified right of access to their medical chart under the European Data Directive 95/46/EC soon to be transposed into Irish law. They also have rights to electronic records under the Data Protection Act, 1988.
All patients have a qualified right of access to their medical file under the Freedom of Information Act, 1997, where that is held by a health board or public hospital. This right also extends to the medical file held by the general practitioner where the patient receives services under the choice of doctor scheme. The Offices of the Information and Data Protection Commissioners respectively will be able to advise individuals on how to obtain more detailed advice.
In all cases there remains a duty of care to the patient. Information likely to be injurious to the patient would be withheld. However, under the Freedom of Information Act, if that is the sole barrier to release, the information must be made available on the patient's behalf to another health professional nominated by him.
In its ethical guidelines for doctors, the Medical Council advises that a request for information from a patient always requires a positive response and recommends that doctors ensure that patients are as fully informed as possible about matters relating to an illness. I hope that patients would seek information in the first place from the health professional with whom they have direct contact in the knowledge that it is possible to assert ones rights if that becomes necessary.
