Obtaining test reports

Has the hospitial sent the reports to you GP ? You are entitled to access to you medical records. I recently asked for a copy of a letter from my GP and was given a obscure form to fill in , when I returned with the form a different receptionist said "what is that for" put the form in the bin and printed a copy of the letter I had requested.

There are times when the NHS locally has better equipment than the private sector.

All the best for your treatment.

Thanks Chris

It depends how proactive you want to be. There have been a couple of examples on here of results being lost and it might also be useful if you go for second or third opinions.

We didn’t make a decision to do it - John’s consultants both just automatically copied him into every letter they sent his GP. In more recent times when we had problems with receptionists that didn’t know what a < sign meant (and consequently gave us duff info re PSA results) John just got into a habit of asking for a print out of the results each time. He has never asked for discs of his scans etc as the two consultants seem to communicate very well without it - they are both able to log into the same online system even though we see each privately at two different hospitals. Interestingly, when we started to query whether my father-in-law’s uncommon PCa behaviour could be indicative for John, the oncologist simply logged into Stan’s medical records ... no data protection debate, no consent forms, nothing.

I have just done this. Initially the consultant’s secretary told me she would provide everything for my private consultation, yet when I asked for a DVD of my MRI scan, the radiology department refused as it would be for private use.

But they said I could have a copy if I made a request to the “Access to Records Department” of the hospital. I think it’s to do with the Freedom of Information Act, as the fee of £10 is the same price. Several pages of forms filled in, I.D. provided and £10 paid, I am now the proud possessor of my full medical history as far as PCa goes. I have the rest of my medical records on computer via the EMIS Patient Access app.

Interestingly, the clear bone scan report mentioned trauma to my ribs (I thought it was painful when I hit that tree whilst skiing a couple of years ago!) and degeneration to some obscure part of the spine, which I guess is only to be expected in a 62 year-old model.

Phone the hospital on Monday, and I bet you’ll have all the records you need within a few days.

Edited by member 07 Apr 2018 at 07:35  | Reason: Not specified

Moose you are entitled to copes of your medical records. Did they give you a reason for denial? Your private consultant should be able to request everything from the NHS consultant secretary, which may be easiest way.

My husband was diagnosed privately but we had to be really proactive to make sure we walked away with copies of everything, including personally taking the biopsy report and the MRI report to the reception to request copies before returning the originals to the consultant as he didn’t have spare copies ready to give us.

We had to request the MpMRI scan on CD and physically pick it up. However we then had a file with

- original BUPA PSA tesult
- NHS PSA result done by GP
- copy of MpMRI report ( had to physically take it off the consultant and get a photocopy)
- copy of the biopsy report ( again had to physically take it off the consultant and get a photocopy)
- scan on a CD
- diagnosis letter to GP was copied to us ( infamously telling A he had 10 days to live)

This made it easier to get second opinions as we researched the options that were given and those that were not given).

Since then we have been given scans on CD plus the typed report on the 2 other scans he has had. They are just in the file should we need to share.

Good luck

Clare

No I am not clever Rich but I have spent considerable time and effort since I was diagnosed in 2007 doing research on PCa. I joined this forum in 2008 with the objective of passing on information I thought might be helpful to members and empathizing with their situations whilst also learning from members. The vast majority of my 3900+ posts have not been about me but about others, based not just on my experience but what I had learnt from lectures, reading published papers and meeting some of the leading consultants in the UK and in Germany as well as from members of forums and other research. (I am also a member of a much wider based forum than this one). On many occasions I have encouraged men to explore various possibilities and to opt for second opinions. This would apply to you just as much as anybody else. You are just piqued because I questioned your ability to interpret scans. I most certainly did NOT advise not getting them for an opinion from a qualified radiologist at some stage. Here is an extract from one of the Law firms which brings cases against Radiologists who misinterpret scans. It confirms what I said about skill and ability.  " Radiology is a skill. Some are simply better at it than others although the reality is that even a good radiologist can fail to see a positive finding on an x-ray, mammogram, MRI, or CT-scan. Repetition also helps sometimes. If a doctor is reading one MRI a month, the doctor is not likely to have the same ability as someone who is regularly reading and interpreting MRIs. These low volume radiologists make up a high volume of medical malpractice cases. "

So in view of all the foregoing, I feel I have no reason to be ashamed and trust that on reflection you will realize this is so. You can then apologize to me as well as you did to Lyn.  You can rant as much as you wish on here but this does not extend to abusing members or writing "well" as though I or any other member is at your beck and call. 

I apologize to the OP that I have felt it necessary to defend myself on this thread against ill mannered and unjustified abuse and will not respond to any further taunts.

Edited by member 08 Apr 2018 at 05:11  | Reason: Not specified