I’ve pretty much finished putting together a personal health record at ihealthrecord.com. The final pages of the record ask me to add information on my employer, my insurance provider, the pharmacy I use and hospitals I frequent.

Thankfully, I don’t "frequent" any hospitals right now, but I put down my HMO’s health care "campus" that’s in the town next to mine and leave it at that.

The final page asks me if I want to give anyone else "access privileges" to my PHR, which would "allow another person to view, but not edit" my information.

So I put in my husband’s name and click the "Grant Access" button and then this appears (I’ve removed private information and passwords):

You must PRINT and/or provide the information below to the individual who you are granting access to your iHealthRecord.

Instructions for [my husband] to access the personal iHealthRecord for Jean

1. Turn off any "pop-up" blocker software that is running on your computer

2. Go to https://secure.medem.com/healthrecord/view

3. Use the following information to Log In:

User ID = [They gave an ID here – which, you won’t be offended, will you, if I keep it private? Of COURSE you won’t, I’m certain of it.]

Password = [See above]

You will have access to a "read-only" version of Jean’s iHealthRecord.

 

I test it, pasting in the user ID and password given and then up pops a new window with a "quick view" of my entire record. My husband could just look at it on screen or print it out.

I could give "read only" access to anyone – my mother, my sister, my physician. My doc would have to save the user ID and password given her to my file in her office in order to read my iHealthRecord PHR online. Something I’m not sure she’d do – after all, giving her access to my PHR is my priority, not hers – especially since she already has an "official" medical record on me in her office.

But it certainly could help my husband and/or my sister in case of emergency.

I must admit – nifty!