Announcement
A New Resource for Clinicians and their Patients
OpenNotes is pleased to announce the launch of a new patient-facing resource, How to Use Open Notes.

Today, in accord with new federal rules, clinicians are increasingly offering patients free and ready electronic access to their medical records. This new practice includes the narratives written following visits, known widely as ‘open notes.’ Studies in varying settings indicate that patients, and often their care partners, can become more actively, positively and safely engaged in care by reading these notes.
Designed to help health professionals introduce patients to this practice, How to Use Open Notes:
  • teaches patients how they can benefit from reading open notes
  • highlights how open notes can contribute to patient safety
  • illustrates how open notes can document and address mental health challenges effectively
  • discusses special considerations for pediatric and adolescent notes
  • demonstrates how to involve care partners in transparent communication
  • suggests how patient and family advisory councils (PFACS) can help improve this new practice
  • offers examples of effective notes
  • is easy to navigate
  • is written at a 5th to 8th grade reading level
  • is available in both English and Spanish
How should clinicians use this resource?
Funding
How To Use Open Notes was made possible through grants from the New York Health Foundation (NYHealth), and builds upon research and patient-facing resources originally supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.