I Need To Get My Dad's Medical Records

Years ago, in medical school, I worked on projects to help hospitals digitize medical records. The idea was simple: stop making people carry paper files everywhere and give patients real access to their own information.

We're still not all the way there. Some doctors keep everything on paper. Others have digital records but no patient portal that actually works well. And even when the technology exists, it doesn't help much if the person who needs access, often an adult child looking after a parent, was never set up to use it.

If you need your father's medical records, there are generally two paths. One is his existing online patient portal, if he has one and you have his login. The other is a formal Release of Information form, which he signs to authorize records to be sent to you or to another provider. If he can no longer consent because of memory loss or a health event, you may need power of attorney first, and if that wasn't arranged in advance, a judge may need to grant it. I'm not an attorney, and none of this is legal advice, rather what I've seen play out with clients.

The easiest time to set this up is before you need it, while your father can still walk through the process with you. I help seniors and families do exactly this: set up the right accounts and permissions calmly, so if a health situation does come up, the paperwork isn't one more thing standing in the way.