Patients' Concerns About and Perceptions of Electronic Psychiatric Records

This study assessed concerns about and perceptions of electronic psychiatric records in a university psychiatric adult outpatient clinic. Forty-one patients who refused to have their psychiatric records transferred to the electronic record system were compared with 39 patients who agreed to an electronic record. Regardless of whether or not they refused to have their information transferred to an electronic record, a majority of patients reported numerous concerns about electronic records, such as concerns about unauthorized access to their records by parties within the university health care system. Patients' concerns may affect patient disclosure and other help-seeking behavior and therefore must be addressed by clinicians and health care systems.