Each time you visit a healthcare provider, a record of your visit is made. Typically, this record contains your symptoms, examination and test results, diagnosis, treatment, and a plan for future care or treatment. This information, often referred to as your health or medical record, serves as a:

• basis for planning your care and treatment
• means of communication among the many health professionals who contribute to your care.
• legal document describing the care you received
• means by which you or a third-party payer can verify that services billed were actually provided
• tool in educating health professionals
• source of data for facility planning and marketing
• source of data for medical research
• source of information for public health officials charged with improving the health of the nation
• tool with which we can assess and continually work to improve the care we render and the outcomes we achieve

Understanding what is in your record and how your health information is used helps you to:

• ensure its accuracy
• make more informed decisions when authorizing disclosure to others
• better understand who, what, when, where, and why others may access your health information