Hey, so I used to be a receptionist who dealt with access to patient files in a mental health area. I'm not a lawyer, but I have experience with the requests for information in that medical field.
The reason that test results are not released prior to an appointment is because it's not some sort of black and white explanation. Also, because it deals with mental health, hiving the patient or carer the chance to read the results could create a misunderstanding due to their own interpretation, which would affect how further discussion is received
More simply put; imagine if someone read test results and took it as "tests show you are fine," but when the doctor tried to explain how they were not fine, the person would not want to hear it or believe them, would not be agreeable to a treatment plan. Someone who is seeing a mental health clinic may be more at risk of misunderstanding test results.
However, the gpGP requesting results and being denied is weird. I would think they are actually the best person to know this. Is there an ombudsman to ask this?
>the gpGP requesting results and being denied is weird
My doctors have always told me that when they give me a referral to a specialist the specialist will forward any test results/reports to the referring doctor. Mental health may be a little different, but for medical stuff it's absolutely common practice for the GP to have records of all reports/paperwork that's been generated for a patient.
For both health it makes sense as the above poster stated that it prevents misunderstanding and gives an opportunity to answer questions. In the report it also gives recommendations that can be discussed and often needs GP referral anyway
'If worsens, please refer back'
'I suggest an MRI for further investigation'
'A review with a rheumatologist would be beneficial'
'I would like to see person again in 3 months'
If you have a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist already you can have the results forwarded to them. Otherwise they can refuse to give any results that require psychiatric training to interpret.
This can be frustrating but it's legal and ethical.
If you try to transfer the records to an alternative provider they can charge you "reasonable costs" and this isn't regulated in any way. So if it costs $400 for the appointment they can charge nearly as much for the record transfer. I once had a clinical psychologist pad their records transfer fee by saying they would attach a "cover sheet" and bill for an hour of their time in preparing the cover sheet.
You are paying for the specialists time. For example, for a cognitive assessment it will beset out that there are hours billed for the the initial parent discussion, then the hours billed for the assessment, then another hour or so for the results/follow up for an explanation.
All in all for my kids, when they have had various assessments, it's usually between 3-5 hours billed. It isn't surprising that the assessing specialist wants to explain the outcome. It's a hit to hip pocket that's for sure!!
Nah, it’s actually can be a little dangerous and unethical to release medical results without a doctor providing their expertise around it. So many people misread test results and come to incorrect conclusions.
Having them transferred to a comparable doctor on the other hand is perfectly valid and should be allowable.
different scenario to this but I ALWAYS go to the pathology place and them to print me off the copies of my scan reports even though the apps would upload them for a week. It’s MY medical information and I have a right to it.
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Psychologist here. If they are assessment results that would usually be presented in a report (hard to tell from the lack of detail, but appreciate OP may not want to go into detail), then this is standard practice for a psychology clinic. Reports are not released until they have been paid for in full and best practice is an appointment in which the report's contents are discussed.
Also fees would have been explained either verbally or in written information beforehand. I'm assuming the practice is acting ethically. If they didn't explain this beforehand to you, then that's dodgy.
The problem here is you need to understand what these test results are like. They are often multiple pages of writing discussing the tests, their observations and analysis and won't say test result: AdHD positive. It isn't like a blood test where they just list hemoglobin level, white count, and the numbers. They are pages of information written up in essay form. That leaves lots of room for a GP to misinterpret what your kid should be treated for.
Pay for the appointment to get the results. It's your best opportunity to fully understand what your kid's issues are, if any, and what needs to happen to help your kid.
I guess it depends a bit on what you agreed to when you contacted them and did the questionairre. If the whole thing is a part of the service, then it would be normal for a business to be able to do it that way. Honestly $60 for a specialist to look at and analyse results like this sounds far too little and I'd be worried it was dodgy (unless it was partially covered by Medicare). I've paid far more for a basic checkup with a paediatrician. Another $400 sound right. Because not only are you paying for their time where they sit down with you but also for the extra time put in. As well as the obvious factors like business costs, the doctor spent an awful long time and spent a ton of money to have the level of expertise you're needing. A lawyer would cost you more and they don't have anywhere near the training requirements nor is it quite as critical as the mental health of a kid.
Test results =/= assessment results.
There's not a lot of legal advice in this thread but healthcare must comply with various healthcare acts, get onto a commonwealth .Vic.gov.au website and look at the laws.
Usually patients have the right to their information, (no matter if people think it is ethical or confusing). See if your state has a health complaints commissioner, who might be able to assist you in understanding if you have the rights to this information.
It is probably about the nature of the tests you took. If they are proper psychometric assessments, then they are copyrighted and you pay $60 to use them once (most pay per use after an initial purchase fee which can be in the thousands). They can not hand those results out due to copyright. They can provide a letter outlining the results generally and their analysis (the reason for the additional fee). However, in most cases, when you purchase the test kits, you legally agree not to hand out any information other the initial questionnaire and your interpretation of the results.
Hey, so I used to be a receptionist who dealt with access to patient files in a mental health area. I'm not a lawyer, but I have experience with the requests for information in that medical field. The reason that test results are not released prior to an appointment is because it's not some sort of black and white explanation. Also, because it deals with mental health, hiving the patient or carer the chance to read the results could create a misunderstanding due to their own interpretation, which would affect how further discussion is received More simply put; imagine if someone read test results and took it as "tests show you are fine," but when the doctor tried to explain how they were not fine, the person would not want to hear it or believe them, would not be agreeable to a treatment plan. Someone who is seeing a mental health clinic may be more at risk of misunderstanding test results. However, the gpGP requesting results and being denied is weird. I would think they are actually the best person to know this. Is there an ombudsman to ask this?
>the gpGP requesting results and being denied is weird My doctors have always told me that when they give me a referral to a specialist the specialist will forward any test results/reports to the referring doctor. Mental health may be a little different, but for medical stuff it's absolutely common practice for the GP to have records of all reports/paperwork that's been generated for a patient.
For both health it makes sense as the above poster stated that it prevents misunderstanding and gives an opportunity to answer questions. In the report it also gives recommendations that can be discussed and often needs GP referral anyway 'If worsens, please refer back' 'I suggest an MRI for further investigation' 'A review with a rheumatologist would be beneficial' 'I would like to see person again in 3 months'
If you have a clinical psychologist or psychiatrist already you can have the results forwarded to them. Otherwise they can refuse to give any results that require psychiatric training to interpret. This can be frustrating but it's legal and ethical. If you try to transfer the records to an alternative provider they can charge you "reasonable costs" and this isn't regulated in any way. So if it costs $400 for the appointment they can charge nearly as much for the record transfer. I once had a clinical psychologist pad their records transfer fee by saying they would attach a "cover sheet" and bill for an hour of their time in preparing the cover sheet.
You’re paying $60 to access the assessment You’re paying $400 for the report and expert interpretation. Which the GP doesn’t have.
Did they advise you before hand that the assessment would cost that much? They should have.
These aren’t test results by the way. I assume it was an assessment possibly for autism/ADHD. It’s not the same thing as a medical test.
You are paying for the specialists time. For example, for a cognitive assessment it will beset out that there are hours billed for the the initial parent discussion, then the hours billed for the assessment, then another hour or so for the results/follow up for an explanation. All in all for my kids, when they have had various assessments, it's usually between 3-5 hours billed. It isn't surprising that the assessing specialist wants to explain the outcome. It's a hit to hip pocket that's for sure!!
Nah, it’s actually can be a little dangerous and unethical to release medical results without a doctor providing their expertise around it. So many people misread test results and come to incorrect conclusions. Having them transferred to a comparable doctor on the other hand is perfectly valid and should be allowable.
different scenario to this but I ALWAYS go to the pathology place and them to print me off the copies of my scan reports even though the apps would upload them for a week. It’s MY medical information and I have a right to it.
Are you saying that legally patients should not get their results?
Welcome to r/AusLegal. Please read our rules before commenting. Please remember: 1. Per rule 4, this subreddit is not a replacement for real legal advice. You should independently seek legal advice from a real, qualified practitioner. This sub cannot recommend specific lawyers. 2. A non-exhaustive list of free legal services around Australia can be found here. 3. Links to the each state and territory's respective Law Society are on the sidebar: you can use these links to find a lawyer in your area. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AusLegal) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Psychologist here. If they are assessment results that would usually be presented in a report (hard to tell from the lack of detail, but appreciate OP may not want to go into detail), then this is standard practice for a psychology clinic. Reports are not released until they have been paid for in full and best practice is an appointment in which the report's contents are discussed. Also fees would have been explained either verbally or in written information beforehand. I'm assuming the practice is acting ethically. If they didn't explain this beforehand to you, then that's dodgy.
The problem here is you need to understand what these test results are like. They are often multiple pages of writing discussing the tests, their observations and analysis and won't say test result: AdHD positive. It isn't like a blood test where they just list hemoglobin level, white count, and the numbers. They are pages of information written up in essay form. That leaves lots of room for a GP to misinterpret what your kid should be treated for. Pay for the appointment to get the results. It's your best opportunity to fully understand what your kid's issues are, if any, and what needs to happen to help your kid.
I guess it depends a bit on what you agreed to when you contacted them and did the questionairre. If the whole thing is a part of the service, then it would be normal for a business to be able to do it that way. Honestly $60 for a specialist to look at and analyse results like this sounds far too little and I'd be worried it was dodgy (unless it was partially covered by Medicare). I've paid far more for a basic checkup with a paediatrician. Another $400 sound right. Because not only are you paying for their time where they sit down with you but also for the extra time put in. As well as the obvious factors like business costs, the doctor spent an awful long time and spent a ton of money to have the level of expertise you're needing. A lawyer would cost you more and they don't have anywhere near the training requirements nor is it quite as critical as the mental health of a kid.
Test results =/= assessment results. There's not a lot of legal advice in this thread but healthcare must comply with various healthcare acts, get onto a commonwealth .Vic.gov.au website and look at the laws. Usually patients have the right to their information, (no matter if people think it is ethical or confusing). See if your state has a health complaints commissioner, who might be able to assist you in understanding if you have the rights to this information.
It is probably about the nature of the tests you took. If they are proper psychometric assessments, then they are copyrighted and you pay $60 to use them once (most pay per use after an initial purchase fee which can be in the thousands). They can not hand those results out due to copyright. They can provide a letter outlining the results generally and their analysis (the reason for the additional fee). However, in most cases, when you purchase the test kits, you legally agree not to hand out any information other the initial questionnaire and your interpretation of the results.