To the Editor:
This might be of interest to former patients of the Osprey Medical Clinic.
When I saw the Osprey Medical Clinic ad in the July 3 Advance regarding the handling of patients’ medical records, I sent a copy of the ad to Nelson-Creston MLA Michelle Mungall’s office checking the legality of it.
According to the BC Medical Association, it seems that fees being charged by the Osprey Medical Clinic are likely not legal.
In the BCMA’s professional standards and guidelines under the section “Ownership and Disclosure of Medical Records”, it stated that the ownership of medical records belongs to the physician who created them. Any person interfering with the physician’s access to those records would be creating a barrier to the patient’s continuum of care and are acting outside of the recommended guidelines of the college.
According to the BCMA, patients whose physicians were locked out of the Osprey Medical Clinic who have been unable to obtain copies of their medical records for any purpose (personal or for a transfer to a new physician) will need to file a formal complaint with the College of Physicians and Surgeons for them to open an investigation.
Creston