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Taking The Long View of Medical Record PDF
Taking The Long View of Medical Record PDF
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Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an argument for taking the long view of the
retention and preservation of inactive medical records.
Design/methodology/approach – Using the theoretical framework of Actor-Network Theory, the
author examines medical records, and especially mental health records, as actants that participate in
the classification and treatment of patients, and in the development of psychiatry and mental hospitals
as social institutions.
Findings – The varied and profound roles of medical records demonstrate the ability for records to
have multiple “lives” that can touch many individuals beyond a single human lifetime.
Practical implications – As the current and future custodians of historical medical record
collections, information professionals are in a position to be greater advocates for the increased
preservation of and mindful access to these materials.
Social implications – Medical records have potential to be cultural heritage documents, especially
for emergent communities.
Originality/value – This paper articulates the ways in which medical records are an embedded part
of many societies, and affect the ways in which illness is defined and treated. It thus suggests that
while laws regarding the retention and destruction of and access to medical records continue to be
deliberated upon around the world, such records can have enduring value as information artifacts.
Keywords Archives, Classification, Theory, Information profession, Health, Information control
Paper type Conceptual paper
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Corresponding author
Lorraine Dong can be contacted at: lorrie.d@gmail.com
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