How to get your mental health records

Who holds your psychiatric records?

Make a short list of the places where you received care: a private psychiatrist, a hospital ward, a community team, a therapist or your primary care practice. One service may have letters from another without holding its complete record. In England, for example, PCSE distinguishes GP records from records held by hospital and mental health services.

1. Start with the place that created the document

   For a hospital assessment or discharge summary, ask the hospital. For a private consultation, ask the clinic. Look for “health records”, “release of information”, “medical records” or “privacy” on its official website.

2. Say whether you want your own copy or a transfer

   A request to read your records and an arrangement to send them to another clinician may use different processes. If you need both, say so. For a change of provider, our guide to changing psychiatrists covers the wider handover.

3. Ask who can help if you are unsure

   Give the approximate year, location and team. If the name of the clinic has changed, ask who now holds the records. You can keep this first enquiry short, then provide the identifying details through the route the service confirms.

If you need care, medication advice or urgent follow-up now, contact your care team directly. A records request is a separate process and may take time. Our guide to follow-up after psychiatric hospital discharge can help you identify whom to contact about the next step in care.

Which mental health documents should you ask for?

Choose the information that answers your question. If you want a broad copy of the record, say that explicitly. If you only need one letter for an appointment, identify it. The ICO’s guidance on making a request recommends being specific about the information and dates.

These are prompts for a request, not a guarantee that every document exists or can be released in full. Ask the team to explain unfamiliar record names. A copy of an existing report is also different from commissioning a new medical opinion, certificate or letter.

How to request mental health records: a message you can adapt

Use the service’s official contact route. Ask which identifying details or proof it needs and how to send them. If its form is unclear, ask for help completing it. Keep a copy of the request, the date and any reference number.

Add a safe way to contact you. You can mention an upcoming appointment and ask whether a particular report can be supplied sooner, without assuming that this changes the legal deadline. In the UK, this is commonly called a subject access request, or SAR; terminology elsewhere varies.

If someone is helping you, decide whether they are simply helping draft the message or will receive the information themselves. Ask the service how to document their authority if they will act on your behalf.

How long does it take, and will you have to pay?

The relevant rules usually depend on where the records are held and the type of provider. These are starting points for adults requesting their own information. Ask the organisation to confirm the process and deadline that apply to your request.

Go to: United States · United Kingdom · Australia · Canada.

United States: ask the provider’s records or privacy office

For providers covered by HIPAA, you generally have a right to inspect or obtain your medical record, with exceptions. HHS explains that reasonable copying and mailing charges may apply, but a provider cannot refuse your copy because you have an unpaid treatment bill. State law may give additional rights.

Under the HIPAA access timeline, the provider must act within 30 calendar days after receiving the request. It may take up to 30 additional days if, within the initial period, it gives written reasons and a completion date. Ask whether a portal download already contains the documents you need and request anything missing directly.

United Kingdom: make a subject access request to the record holder

Contact the clinic, hospital or mental health service that holds the information. In England, PCSE explains that hospital and mental health records may need a separate request from GP records. Confirm the local route in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The ICO’s updated access guidance sets a usual one-month response period. Identity or authority checks, necessary clarification and permitted extensions can affect the date; qualifying complex or multiple requests may allow two further months. Most requests are free, with limited exceptions. Ask for the calculated response date and the reason for any fee or extension.

Australia: distinguish private providers from public hospitals

Ask the psychiatrist, clinic or hospital for its access process. The OAIC says a response should come within a reasonable period, generally 30 days, under the federal privacy framework. Public hospital records are governed by state or territory laws, so check that hospital’s process instead of assuming the same rule applies.

Access fees may apply and must not be excessive under OAIC guidance. Ask for an estimate and whether a different format would reduce the cost. For older records, ask the practice where they are now held; retention requirements differ by state or territory.

Canada: check your province or territory; Ontario example

Ask the provider’s health records or privacy office which law and process apply. In Ontario, the Information and Privacy Commissioner’s PHIPA guidance explains how to request your records from the organisation holding them. Depending on the circumstances, it has 30 to 60 calendar days to respond.

A fee may be charged in Ontario, but an estimate must be provided first; you can ask for a waiver. A formal written request matters if you later need to complain to the IPC about refused access. These are Ontario rules, not a single deadline or fee policy for all of Canada.

Elsewhere: ask the service for its patient access policy and the name of the relevant privacy or health authority. If treatment took place in more than one country, expect to contact each record holder separately.

Can you read your psychiatrist’s or therapist’s notes?

“Notes” can mean several things. An assessment report, an ordinary clinical entry and a therapist’s separately kept notes may be treated differently. Ask which category the service means.

In the US, HHS defines psychotherapy notes as a separate category kept apart from the medical record. That category excludes medication and monitoring information, test results and summaries of diagnosis, treatment plans or progress. HIPAA’s patient-access right does not include those separate psychotherapy notes. This exception does not make the whole psychiatric record inaccessible.

Do not apply that US distinction automatically in another country. If some information is withheld, ask what rule applies and what can still be released. Under UK access rules, for example, a response may contain your information with other material removed, rather than an unedited copy of every original document.

What if records are missing, delayed or refused?

Try to identify the exact problem before making a new request. A missing attachment, a request sent to the wrong clinic and a decision to withhold information need different follow-up.

• No acknowledgement: ask whether the correct team received the request and whether identification or clarification is outstanding.
• A document is missing: identify its date, author or purpose, and ask whether it is held elsewhere or was outside the scope of the search.
• The response is late: quote your reference number and request date, and ask for the reason and revised response date.
• Information was withheld: ask for an explanation of the decision and the review or complaint process. Ask whether the remaining information can be supplied.

Local access rights have exceptions. The Ontario IPC describes grounds for refusing some health information, and the OAIC explains written refusal notices and complaint routes. A refusal should be assessed under the applicable rules; this guide cannot determine whether a particular decision is lawful.

If the psychiatrist has retired or the clinic has closed

Start with the practice’s closure notice or its remaining administrative team. Ask who took responsibility for the records. Your GP or another clinician may have copies of earlier correspondence. If you cannot locate the holder, seek guidance from the local health authority or professional regulator. Avoid assuming that an old record still exists or that a new clinician automatically received it.

What if something in your mental health record is wrong?

Point to the exact entry and explain what needs attention. A wrong date, a medicine you did not take, an old address and a clinical opinion you disagree with are different issues. Ask the service how to make a correction or amendment request, and keep its reply.

Requesting a correction does not guarantee that an earlier diagnosis or opinion will be deleted. The ICO explains that a record can accurately describe a clinician’s opinion at the time, even when later findings change it. Ask whether the current understanding and any correction are clearly recorded. If you want a fresh assessment of your diagnosis or care, raise that separately with a clinician.

Some systems allow a statement of disagreement when a correction is not accepted. For example, the OAIC describes how to ask for a statement to be attached. Ask what applies where your records are held and who can explain any unfamiliar terminology.

Reading and sharing your copy at your own pace

A report may bring back a difficult period or use words you would not choose for yourself. You can read a little at a time and note questions for the clinician. Consider asking someone you trust to sit with you, while deciding which parts you want them to see.

Three useful questions are: “What does this term mean here?”, “Was this a possibility or a confirmed conclusion?” and “Does this still describe the current plan?” Bring the relevant page to a conversation instead of feeling you must interpret the whole file alone.

Before sending records to another service, confirm the recipient and its approved transfer method. Keep your copy somewhere private and choose carefully whom you give access to. If a service asks for a particular report, clarify what it needs before sending an entire history. HopeStage does not need your clinical records to let you read this guide or download the template.

If you are preparing to discuss the documents with a new clinician, our first psychiatrist appointment guide can help you organise the questions you want answered.