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The laws of all states permit patients to obtain copies of any existing records pertaining
to their medical care and treatment. Many physicians and hospitals have their own records
request forms, but the form that follows is probably acceptable in the majority of
cases. Before making a request, try to obtain
as much information as possible to help the doctor or hospital in its search. Your
mother’s married and maiden names, her date of birth, and her Social Security number
will all be required at a minimum. Her dates of treatment by the doctor and her dates of
admission for any hospital stays (including labor and delivery) will also be necessary.
The more information you provide, the more likely the request will be processed.
Unfortunately, most states do not require health care providers to keep records more than
7 to 10 years, so your mother’s prenatal care or labor and delivery records may have
been destroyed long ago. It is surprising, though, how often records are kept for much
longer periods than required. I have been able to obtain at least some records in the
majority of the cases I have handled.
After you have obtained as much information as
possible, contact the office of your mother’s physician if he is still in practice.
If he is retired or deceased, contact any successor physician or remaining partners in his
medical practice. A sample letter and authorization follow. If he is retired but still
alive, you or your mother might approach him directly. Be prepared, though, as many older
or retired physicians feel threatened or defensive when questioned about their use of DES.
Many deny that they ever used it, or question why you want to know about it. They may be
afraid of legal liability (though there is none, and they shouldn’t be) or ashamed of
their part in the DES tragedy. If they are willing to discuss it with you, make them
realize that you are not blaming them for what happened. In some ways, the doctors were
victims much as you were. They were pressured to prescribe DES by the drug companies and
their colleagues. As one physician put it, he would have been "entirely lacking in
civic loyalty if [he] had not used stilbestrol in [his] private practice."
Don’t give up on your records search if the first
response that you receive is that the records have been destroyed. Check with any
successors or former partners of your mother’s physician, or check with your
state’s medical board to see if her doctor designated a custodian of records upon his
retirement. If your mother changed doctors at some point after your birth, her records may
have been transferred to her subsequent physician. Check with his office too. As for a
hospital search, you may have to track the corporate history of your birth hospital. With
today’s mergers and takeovers, your records may be in the custody of a new hospital
or one other than where you were born.
If all fails and records
cannot be located, that does not mean that you cannot prove that you were DES exposed.
Certain physical injuries are "classic" physical evidence of DES exposure and
can be almost as strong as written proof.
Sample Letter
Date
Name of Doctor, Hospital or Records Custodian
Address
City and State
Re: Patient name: (your mother's name, including her maiden name)
Date of Birth: (her date of birth)
Soc. Sec. No.: (her social security number)
Date of Treatment: (dates of her pregnancy treatment
for doctor's
records or dates of hospital stays
for hospital or labor and
delivery records)
Dear <name> :
I am the (daughte/son) of (Mother's name), a former patient of yours.
Please provide the undersigned with a complete copy of (Mother's
name)'s entire file, including all physician and nursing notes, operative reports,
orders, lab results, x-ray reports, correspondence and insurance information. I would
appreciate receiving these records as soon as possible, and I enclose a signed
authorization allowing their release. Any reasonable copy charges (less than $35) will be
promptly paid; however, should the costs exceed that amount, I would appreciate a call
first at (Your Phone Number). If you have any questions or
require any additional information, please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
Your Name and Address
Enclosure
AUTHORIZATION FOR RELEASE OF MEDICAL
RECORDS
TO: Insert Name and Address of Hospital or Physician's
Office
This authorizes physicians, hospitals, and
all medical providers to furnish full and complete medical records and reports and any
other information hereby requested by the undersigned to:
| (Your Name) |
________________ |
| (Your Address) |
________________ |
|
________________ |
|
________________ |
_
PATIENT (Mom's name)
Soc. Sec. #:
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