One of the reasons that procedures vary for handling patient records is the volume of patients seen on any given day. By comparing and contrasting record management systems in different sized facilities, you will have information to contribute to several activities in this course.

By Week Four you should have completed three interviews, which you may conduct in person or by phone. You need to use the list of questions in the table on the next page to gather information about each of the following:

A small medical facility-an office for one or two doctors
A medium-sized facility-a clinic where several doctors work in partnership
A large facility-a hospital or medical center

People will be more likely to cooperate if you disclose that the information you want is related to schoolwork, you will not take up much of their time, and none of the information is confidential.

Consider introducing yourself with something like the following:

Hello, my name is ________ and I need some general information about filing systems for a school assignment. Would it be possible to speak to the person in charge of filing patient records for a few quick questions, or may I call back at another time?

If the facility needs proof that you are a student, you must provide your instructor with a name and e-mail address to send a permission notice, and then allow three days for your instructor to send the notice. It is your responsibility to follow up with the prospective facility after your instructor has been notified. When you call back, be sure to ask to speak with the appropriate person, because you cannot expect that the person who answers the phone will know about your request.

Once you have permission to proceed, verify that you are talking to a person who is knowledgeable about maintaining patient records there, and ask the questions in the table on the next page.