What are medical records?
Your records may include:
- test results, x-rays and scans
- diagnosis and treatments
- reports and letters from doctors and specialists
- surgical, nursing and allied health notes.
Your medical records may be kept in an electronic system, in a paper file or a mix of both.
Your records are private and confidential.
Accessing your medical records
Your medical record is the property of the hospital but you have the right to ask for access to these records.
You can apply for access to your records. You can also apply to change personal information you believe is wrong, incomplete, out of date or misleading.
You can access your discharge summary, pathology reports and x-ray reports online using My Health Record.
Australian Government My Health Record
My Health record includes:
- Queensland Health pathology and x-ray reports from June 2018 onwards
- Queensland Health discharge summaries from November 2013 onwards.
You won't get a discharge summary for some hospital visits such as day surgery and emergency.
If your recent discharge summary isn't in your My Health Record, please email DDInfoaccess@health.qld.gov.au and we'll follow it up.
Accessing other records
You can also apply for other information in your health records.
You'll need to provide evidence of your identity such as a copy of your drivers licence, passport or birth certificate. The copy must be certified as a ‘true copy’ by a Justice of the Peace.
To apply for access to your health records please complete the Administrative Access form [PDF 1.1 MB] and email it to DDInfoaccess@health.qld.gov.au along with proof of your identity.
If we can't process your application under the administrative access scheme it will be transferred for processing under the Information Privacy Act 2009 (Qld).
Learn more about how to get someone else's health records.
GP use of your hospital medical records
Your GP needs access to your hospital records, scans, x-ray and test results. They use these for your ongoing care and treatment after you've been in hospital.
If you are a health provider, learn more about how to access your patient's health record.
Privacy and confidentiality
We're committed to making sure your medical records are private and safe.
Sometimes your health records will need to be shared between health care providers.