Most patients allowed to see their doctor’s clinical notes find it empowers them and helps them understand why a medication is being prescribed, a survey shows.

US researchers involved in the ‘Open Notes’ international movement have done a follow-up to the original Open Notes pilot trial published seven years ago.

Their survey of 19,000 US patients prescribed a drug and given online access to the consult notes found that 64% saw this as helpful, with only a minority (6%) reporting it made them worried or confused.

In two cohorts where patients were asked directly if seeing notes helped with medication adherence, only 14% said it did.