I am a big fan of DIY (do-it-yourself) healthcare, at least for the bulk relatively minor issues that plague people. I think the days when doctors were needed to control, interpret and dole out health data and information are waning. There are simply too many ways, primarily via the internet, to get good, reliable, easy-to-understand information about our own health.
The Quantified Self (QS)people who use sensors, mobile apps, and other devices to collect data on themselves may be taking it to what some would consider extreme, but I think it is the wave of the future.
Now, no one would question who “owns” the data collected in this manner, but how about data collected via a medical laboratory? Is that somehow different and something we, the patients, should not be allowed direct access to lest we harm ourselves by misinterpretation. Interesting question!
The issue is explored in a commentary in the December 14, 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Traber Davis Giardina, MA, MSW and Hardeep Singh MD, MPH, ask the question: “Should Patients Get Direct Access to their Laboratory Test Results?” They find that it is “An Answer with Many Questions.”
