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National Institutes of Health
Personal Health Records
Also called: Electronic health records, Patient health record
You've probably seen your chart at your doctor's office. In fact, you may have charts at several doctors' offices. If you've been in the hospital, you have a chart there, too. To keep track of all this information, it's a good idea to keep your own records.
What kind of information would you put in a personal health record? You could start with
- Your name, birth date, blood type and emergency contact
- Date of last physical
- Dates and results of tests and screenings
- Major illnesses and surgeries, with dates
- A list of your medicines, dosages and how long you've taken them
- Any allergies
- Any chronic diseases
- Any history of illnesses in your family
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Start Here
- What Is a Personal Health Record (PHR)?(American Health Information Management Association)
The top row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
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Learn More
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Multimedia & Cool Tools
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For group Multimedia & Cool Tools
The bottom row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Research
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Reference Shelf
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For You
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Overviews
- Frequently Asked Questions about Personal Health Records(American Health Information Management Association)
- Personal Health Records (PHRs)(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
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Latest News
- Is Too Much E-Communication Swamping Doctors?(03/04/2013, HealthDay)
- U.S. Doctors Slow to Adopt Electronic Health Records(02/20/2013, HealthDay)
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Specific Conditions
- Common Privacy Myths(American Health Information Management Association)
- Privacy and Your Health Information(Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights) - PDF
- Also available in Spanish
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Related Issues
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Accessing Your Health Information: Your Rights and Your Provider's Responsibilities(Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
- Avoiding Medical Identity Theft(American Health Information Management Association)
- Creating a Health Journal(American Academy of Family Physicians)
- Also available in Spanish
- Frequently Asked Questions in Ethics(American Medical Association)
- How to Create a Personal Health Record(American Health Information Management Association)
- Information for Caregivers(American Health Information Management Association)
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Letting Your Personal Health Information Be Used and Shared for Research(National Institutes of Health)
- Protecting the Privacy and Security of Your Health Information(Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
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What Your Can Do to Protect Your Health Information(Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
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Your Health Information Rights(Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
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Videos
- Creating a Personal Medical Record(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
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Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Electronic Health Records(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Health Records, Personal(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Health Records, Personal(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Confidentiality(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Electronic Health Records
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Research
- Physicians Weigh the Costs and Benefits of Integrating E-Prescribing Systems with Electronic Health Records(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
- Physicians' Unfamiliarity with Electronic Personal Health Records May Slow Their Adoption(Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality)
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
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Dictionaries/Glossaries
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Health IT Terms: Important Health IT Terminology(Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology)
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Organizations
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Law and Policy
- Health Information Privacy(Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights)
- Notice of Privacy Practices for the Original Medicare Plan(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
- Your Health Information Privacy Rights(Department of Health and Human Services, Office for Civil Rights) - PDF
- Also available in Spanish
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Statistics
- Electronic Health Record Systems and Intent to Apply for Meaningful Use Incentives among Office-based Physician Practices: United States, 2001-2011(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Physician Adoption of Electronic Health Record Systems: United States, 2011(National Center for Health Statistics)
- Use and Characteristics of Electronic Health Record Systems among Office-Based Physician Practices: United States, 2001-2012(National Center for Health Statistics)
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MedlinePlus Magazine
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Teenagers
- Electronic Health Records(Nemours Foundation)
- Your Medical Records(Nemours Foundation)
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