Do we as the remaining spouse have the right to ask for LO's medical records? I asked ALF for LO's records a month ago,they told me they would be mailed an so far nothing,I know ALF's have almost no rules that they have to abide by,at least in this state(Mich)but after Director told me they would be mailed an then has completely ignored me I'm wondering if a letter from family attorney might speed the process
if they said you can have them,i'd call to the person in RECORDS get their name and say i will be there... suchnsuch day at such time. and say, have them ready for pickup. if not tell them you are prepared to wait on them. it that doesnt work then maybe having a letter. try easy first. you may also have to pay for the copying.
Some minor BUT IMPORTANT facts about medical records:
Yes, you have every right to access and read 'your' (spouse) medical INFORMATION However . . . . The INSTITUTION owns the paper they are printed on! (or computer they are stored on)
This means that they can limit access to certain days and times, the length of time to respond to requests for review and whether you can be left alone with them (you might have to have an attendant present while you review them).
They decide whether you can remove them from the building for review or copying (unlikely) and how much they can charge to make copies of the pages for you.
Some laws might govern the details of above but it pays to remember that while you might be able to access the words on the page, it remains THEIR page that they are printed on.
hmmm thanks,since LO passed away they seem to have witten me off,since they don't get a check from me every month now I guess I'm ancient history,my how money makes such a big difference
If they take medicare or medicaid, then they are bound to conform to HIPPA Law. If you have Medical Power of Attorney , then they are bound to reply to your request in 45 days I think is the time frame. I know this because I wanted my wife's medical records from Hospice and they refused. I then did some research and informed them that they were not in compliance of HIPPA. I got them in 48 hours.
It does not matter if you were private pay, only if they take medicare and medicaid. I would just tell them that Hippa Law requires them to and see what they say.
They might be waiting for you to offer to pay. I know when I belonged to Kaiser to get a copy of my medical records would cost me 10 cents a page. I thought that outrageous. With the VA, the first copy is free, after that they will charge for duplicate.
In my experience difficulties with getting medical records have a lot to do with inefficiencies in their system. Someone charged with the task may simply be overloaded with requests. I don't think it's right but it's often the way it is. Also be advised that psychiatric record are sometimes "protected" and you might have to jump a few extra hoops to get them. Also you should review the records to see if there are any gross inaccuracies. With the popularity of electronic medical records often the person inputting the data may just just push a few buttons and the computer spits out a generic history and physical and assessment lacking all nuance and not really describing the patient well. You didn't really think there are lots of typists entering the data. A lot of this is done by computer.
I guess I should have said why I wanted the records in the first place,about 6-8 months ago I questioned some of the meds they were giving her an thought she was being over medicated,not being familiar with each an every med I was still concerned from things I had read on this site,so I took my statement from pharmacy an questioned the director,she looked at it an called one of her aides in an where I was charged for 60 pills they checked records an told me she had only been givn 3 pills for the whole month,I asked what happened to the other 57 an they couldn't give me an answer,since it was Zanax I thought wow if they do this to one person,how many others are paying for pills that residents arn't actually getting,they had to be going somewhere but noone could explain it,I called pharmacy an they had no records of meds being returned so I sensed a big cover up an thats where it stands today.If they can scam one patient like that imagine how many ALF residents are being scammed an of course the LO's wouldn't even know or be able to tell us.
Don*, I know of a similar case at the first care facility DH was in. The patient, who was very bright and there only for a medical condition, caught the discrepancy the first month she went over her pharmacy charges. She called them on it; they made her life miserable, and she shortly after that she left to go back home with in-home care. That was a bad facility in other ways, too, which is why I moved DH. Whether it's poor bookkeeping or the money is going in someone's pocket, I don't know.
75 methinks the pills were going somewhere,those residents have no idea what meds their taking an a dishonest aide could be making more selling drugs on the street then their take home pay from ALF,somethings very fishy,drugs were all in bubble packs an the pharmacy told me they would take them back but none were ever returned an ALF couldn't explain where the excess meds went,it never ends does it
No, it never ends: people taking advantage of vulnerable folks. I guess the only thing that can be done is for the good guys to be vigilant. Comes at a price, though.
This is a great learning tool for many of us whose spouses are not ready to go to ALF and/or some place else on an emergency type situation. I would tell the nurse at the ALF, that I want an accounting of all medications that are ordered and paid for by me if they are not completely used....before he is admitted.
When my DH returned from NH while I took respite, he came home by ambulance. He was knocked out! I counted his pain pills and bottle of ativan and all meds were as I sent. Nothing was missing. His son visited and said dad never woke up while he was there and he couldn't wake him. We have no way of finding out what and how much he was given.
Maybe they gave him some of the medications they kept from other people. Do you think that might be the case? If he wasn't that way at home and was taking the same medication at home I would be very upset....and want an answer about the situation.
That is what I thought. I raided so much he@@ that they paid for the anbulance ride. He had big red area on buttocks that looked like a handprint even burse said that. Dehydrated, hands contracted. Oh what a storm I created. Never will he go back! I told then that also.
The ALF my husband lives in allows families to provide medications, if they want to. Since we have good drug coverage (mail order), I decided to go that route. I go in once a month and do an inventory of his meds to (1) see what needs to be ordered and (2) see what they are (and potentially are not) giving him. I discovered an error in that they were supposed to give him 1/2 pill and they were giving the whole pill each day! Now I cut the pills in half at home and the error was corrected. If I allowed the ALF to order the drugs and wasn't doing an inventory, it would have taken me much longer to realize what was going on.
Many LTC facilities will allow families to provide medications, but if they administer the medications they will charge to put the pills into individual dose packets (there is a machine that does it) at a per pill cost. In that case it would be important to cut pills ahead of time. I think this to help avoid mistakes in administration and to combat theft.
Luckily, this ALF doesn't require the bubble wrapping of the pills brought in by the family--another savings. I think because of the economy, they are willing to offer small savings because some families are opting to keep LO's at home instead of paying the enormous cost out of pocket for care.