{"id":45659,"date":"2019-04-24T10:08:30","date_gmt":"2019-04-24T14:08:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/?p=45659"},"modified":"2020-09-23T15:12:11","modified_gmt":"2020-09-23T19:12:11","slug":"patients-can-access-their-health-records-securely-on-their-digital-devices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/healthy-tomorrows\/patients-can-access-their-health-records-securely-on-their-digital-devices\/","title":{"rendered":"Patients can access their health records securely on their digital devices"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><em>Angie Hamson (Right) is happy that she no longer has to cart around her big blue binder. The new digital health records system has a patient portal, called MyChart, that allows Angie and Charlie to securely see Charlie\u2019s real-time, up-to-date test results digitally. When he transitions to The Ottawa Hospital as an adult, Charlie can use a version of MyChart.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For years, Angie\nHamson went from one doctor appointment to another carrying\na blue binder that weighed eight-and-a-half pounds. The binder held vital information about her nine-year-old son, Charlie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Charlie has complex medical issues that involve his brain, his heart, and his palate. So far, he has had 14 surgeries and countless medical tests. The binder was the only way that Angie could keep track of Charlie\u2019s appointments, medications, test results, surgeries, reports, discharge summaries, follow-up visits, and any outstanding issues that needed to be addressed.&nbsp; She needed this information to monitor Charlie\u2019s progress over the long-term. She didn\u2019t want anything to fall through the cracks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><\/p><cite>\u201cBefore MyChart, having more than one doctor\u2019s appointment in a day led to challenges.\u201d <\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Everything changed\nwhen Angie was introduced to MyChart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>MyChart is a secure portal\nto a digital health records system that securely keeps a patient\u2019s health\nrecords in one place. Patients can access the secure portal using their\ndesktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone or other mobile device. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With MyChart, patients\ncan:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>Track health care goals<\/li><li>See upcoming appointments and check in for\nthem<\/li><li>Enter medication, allergy and health\ncondition updates for a doctor to review at the next appointment<\/li><li>Review and track lab results, vitals and more<\/li><li>Answer hospital questionnaires from the comfort\nof home<\/li><li>View recent clinic visits, After Visit Summaries and notes that doctors release<\/li><li>Receive documents from their doctor like medical notes\nto excuse an absence\nfrom work<\/li><li>Review outstanding invoices<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"520\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2-1024x520.png\" alt=\"MyChart login\" class=\"wp-image-45661\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2-1024x520.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2-600x305.png 600w, https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2-300x152.png 300w, https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2-768x390.png 768w, https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-Binder-photo-2.png 1880w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>MyChart is a secure portal for patients to digitally view their health records in a digital health information system that securely stores a patient\u2019s health records in a network currently shared by six partner health-care organizations. Patients can use MyChart to view and check in for medical appointments, review test results, track health goals, and much more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Ottawa Hospital and\nfive other health-care organizations, which make up the Atlas Alliance, will have\nits own version of MyChart once it launches the Epic Health Information System in\nJune 2019. The Epic system uses the latest technology to securely store patient\nrecords and maintain patient privacy. When Charlie transitions to The Ottawa\nHospital as an adult, he can continue to use a version of MyChart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Before MyChart, having more than one doctor\u2019s appointment in a day led\nto challenges. Angie\nwould often have to wait for Charlie\u2019s paper\nchart to catch up to them, sometimes\ncausing delays at the clinic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;MyChart solves many of these problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFrom a\npractical perspective, I love being able to access Charlie\u2019s health information,\u201d said Angie. \u201cI could look at his reports to see that the mass [in\nCharlie\u2019s brain] was shrinking. I could see that his blood levels\nwere stabilizing. I could see that things were going back to\nnormal.\u201d &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>MyChart also helps\nAngie feel empowered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><\/p><cite>\u201cEnsuring that patients have access to their own information empowers them to better manage their care.\u201d<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t have to rely\non my own handwritten notes or have to wait for someone to give me copies of\nreports,\u201d she said.&nbsp; \u201cWith MyChart, I\nhave access to the reports without even asking.&nbsp;\nBeing granted access to this information makes me feel like part of the\nteam, not someone sitting on the sidelines.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Angie believes that\nmany patients will feel the same way. With MyChart, patients control who can\naccess their digital health records, and when where and how they see them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cEnsuring\nthat patients have secure access to their own information empowers them to\nbetter manage their care.&nbsp; The patient\ncan access their information from anywhere; it is no longer confined to the hospital\nchart.&nbsp; I don\u2019t live in the hospital &#8211;\nwhy should my health-care information?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"423\" height=\"393\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-binder-photo-3.jpg\" alt=\"Heavy binder or mobile device\" class=\"wp-image-45662\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-binder-photo-3.jpg 423w, https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/YIMC-04-24-2019-Epic-binder-photo-3-300x279.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 423px) 100vw, 423px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Heavy binder or mobile device Which would you rather carry?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Angie\nand Charlie have already seen the positive effect MyChart can have on Charlie\u2019s\ncare.&nbsp; When visiting their family doctor\nin the community about a potential infection, Angie was concerned that\nCharlie\u2019s white blood cell count was down slightly.&nbsp; She was worried that it would be harder for\nhim to fight off an infection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Given\nher concerns, Angie used her cellphone to pull up Charlie\u2019s bloodwork report\nfrom a test earlier that week.&nbsp; The\nfamily doctor took a look at the results and said, \u2018given his history with\ninfections, we\u2019re going to make sure we treat this today, instead of waiting to\nsee how it develops.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cHaving access to the relevant records on my phone\nmeant that our family doctor had the most updated information available,\u201d said\nAngie.&nbsp; \u201cShe didn\u2019t have to wait for a\npaper lab result to be faxed over.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Charlie is one of the millions\nof people who will benefit from MyChart. Last year alone, The Ottawa Hospital saw\n1,174,879 walk-in patients and admitted 59,369 patients. That\u2019s a lot of paper\ncharts!&nbsp; Thanks to MyChart, each patient\ncan review their up-to-date health records in the palm of their hand. It\u2019s a\nrevolution in health care that will help patients feel more in control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s wonderful having\nthese tools now because you really feel like you are steering the ship,\u201d said Angie.&nbsp; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Angie Hamson carried her son Charlie\u2019s health information in a giant blue binder for years. Now through a secure, patient-centred application called MyChart, Angie and Charlie, and anyone else they choose, can see Charlie\u2019s medical records digitally. Angie feels more empowered and Charlie can use a version of MyChart when he transitions to The Ottawa Hospital as an adult.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":45660,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[397,420,381],"class_list":["post-45659","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-healthy-tomorrows","tag-epic","tag-mychart","tag-patient-experience"],"acf":[],"wps_subtitle":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45659","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45659"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45659\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45659"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45659"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ottawahospital.on.ca\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45659"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}