What Happens if You Can’t Find a Medical Record?

At times, it’s possible that a medical provider has trouble when trying to find a medical record. Requests to share a patient’s health records with another medical clinic occur regularly, and valuable time can be saved by following the policies of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996.

How to Find a Medical Record

Medical record retrieval happens when a medical or attorney’s office files a claim to obtain a patient’s health records. Each year healthcare professionals receive about 100 million of these claims. While electronic health record (EHR) systems continue gaining popularity, most medical record claims are processed manually. Staff members commonly spend valuable time copying, faxing, or mailing the records when it could be better spent caring for patients.

What Happens If You Can’t Find a Medical Record?

Sometimes medical records no longer exist, meaning you won’t be able to find them. Usually, this is due to age. Facilities must hold records for seven years after a patient’s treatment date, and destroy them after the allotted time passes. When records are destroyed, it is imperative to receive documentation of that process. When you go into litigation or answer a claim, you still have a paper document stating the original medical record no longer exists. 

American Retrieval works on your behalf to get the needed written proof that the records no longer exist. Since the documents provide critical information when care is negligent, properly locating them is imperative.

Our systems keep you organized whether you are a medical or litigation office. We offer valuable tips and information to support your case medical records organized and easy to reach. Proactively using our digital aids keeps your staff ahead of the game, not stuck searching for lost files.

What Records Are Often Missing?

Several reasons lead to lost claims with the most common being that of aging out. However, clinical negligence and poor administration practices also affect medical record handling. Below are a few explanations for why medical records can go missing:

• Lost test results
• Poor handwriting
• X-ray details not on record
• Faulty computer software impedes data collection
• Neglecting to record relevant information, such as family history or allergies

There are so many data points and handlers of the same that human error sometimes impedes accuracy in medical reporting.

Digital Workflows Aid in Recordkeeping

COVID-19 has shown us that telework is a continuously growing trend, and off-site working means digital workflows abound. As employees become more comfortable with digital data management, it becomes ever easier to digitally coordinate and record patients’ medical care. 

American Retrieval assists your office in incorporating record retrieval into your workflow system, so when an insurance company needs information, it is pre-populated into a claim file. This automation shortens claim request cycle time by days. In addition, it lowers your staff time and cuts down on shipping and handling fees.

Cut Down Your Medical Retrieval Costs With American Retrieval

The answer to not finding medical records is to make it easier to locate them in the future. Take your office from a human-driven, hand-written system to a data-driven digital approach. American Retrieval has served medical offices since 1933, so rest easy knowing the technology systems are available. Our medical record retrieval services allow your office to focus on patients, not paperwork.

Our easy-to-use portal allows for easy data entry accompanied by tools to simplify your record retrieval needs. You’ll never lose a medical record again. We can help you manage your medical retrieval process by providing efficient access, simple storage, advanced analytics, annotation capacity, and various other solutions. Contact us today to discover how we can help you find medical records with the click of a button.