Media release: Audit of administrative access to medical records held in hospital and health services
Queensland’s Office of the Information Commissioner’s audit report into administrative access to medical records was tabled in Parliament today.
The report examines the extent to which two hospital and health services were able to give access to medical records quickly and easily without the need for a formal application.
Being able to access to our personal medical records and health information is an important right and ancillary service provided by public health services. People want and need to access their medical records for various reasons. In 2023-24, Queensland hospital and health services received over 16,000 requests to access information administratively, nearly all for medical records.
Queensland’s Information Commissioner, Joanne Kummrow, said,
‘Citizens expect that public health services will release their personal medical records administratively as a matter of course, unless there is a good reason not to, with formal access applications being necessary only as a last resort. Administrative access to medical records should be a quick, easy and cost effective pathway for access to personal health information, for both agencies and members of the community.’
Following the audit, the Information Commissioner identified four key characteristics of effective arrangements applicable to any agency. Administrative access to information should be:
- well-designed – responsive to community needs, with built-in privacy protections
- supported to be efficient and effective by a toolkit of good policies, procedures and practices
- an efficient alternative to formal access applications – quick, easy, cost-effective, thorough and reliable
- part of an agency’s everyday business operations– well-managed, well understood by all staff, monitored to maintain utility and promoted to the community.
Ms Kummrow said, ‘Future assessments of agency practice will use these criteria to evaluate the strength of agency administrative access arrangements.’
The audit found that people seeking access to medical records from the two audited hospital and health services generally receive a good service. However, it identified opportunities for improvement.
The report makes specific recommendations for improvements to the administrative access processes and procedures of each audited hospital and health service, and a general recommendation for best practice that is applicable to all agencies.
Read the full report (PDF, 12976.54 KB)
Media contact: Steve Haigh
Phone: 3234 7373
