My PhD student Annika Bärkås shares first authorship for the first systematic scoping review study collating existing evidence about sharing EHRs or clinical notes with people treated for mental health conditions. It’s an excellent study, that I’m very proud to have co-authored!

The study aimed to map available evidence on patient accessible electronic health records in mental healthcare. Thirty-one scientific articles from the USA, Sweden, Norway, Netherlands, Canada, the UK, and Australia were included in the review. The study results indicate that patients were mostly positive, such as increased feelings of validation and a sense of control, while healthcare professionals frequently expressed a perceived burden and concerns. This is very similar to previous studies in general medical settings. This study also reports the experiences of care partners, such as family members and friends, and views of policy stakeholders and experts. There is a major research gap on the evidence of sharing EHRs or clinical notes with people affected by mental health conditions and further research is needed.

Within the NORDeHEALTH research project, and Annika’s PhD project, we plan to perform several studies related to patients access to their mental health records. NORDeHEALTH is an international project, and data will be collected in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Estonia. Make sure to follow the project website for updates when we have new results to report!

• Schwarz J, Bärkås A, Blease C, Collins L, Hägglund M, Markham S, Hochwarter S. Sharing Clinical Notes and Electronic Health Records with People Affected by Mental Health Conditions: Scoping Review. JMIR Mental Health. 2021;8(12):e34170. doi: 10.2196/34170. PMID: 34904956.