Hospital records from 1940s

[GettinTrimmer]

If anybody has looked for historical medical records, can you advise how to access records from 1940s on someone receiving treatment in a psychiatric hospital? Thanks in advance.

It might not be possible to access records like that, due to the possibility of the person still being alive. Things like that are usually "locked" for 100 years.

www.bma.org.uk/advice-and-support/ethics/confidentiality-and-health-records/retention-of-health-records
www.nhs.uk/common-health-questions/nhs-services-and-treatments/can-i-access-the-medical-records-health-records-of-someone-who-has-died/
Most of the “ treatment “ in the 1940s was about sedation - with things like chloralhydrate and paraldehyde .. Antipsychotic drugs came into being in the 1950s . ECT was used from 1938 but was very different to ECT now.
Old psychiatric notes are pretty poor. The terms used are pejorative and the details are often lacking.

I don't think you can. They are closed.

I would like to get hold of workhouse records from the 1910s but they are held by a hospital trust atm as they are classed as medical records. They are closed to the public so you cant apply to get them.

There's three levels; open, restricted and closed.

Being medical records within the last 100 years i think you have a cat in hells chance of accessing them.

Thanks for replies and link Runner down some complicated history and I think we've reached a dead end.

I have recently accessed medical records from the 1930s for a project so it's not impossible. However, the patient I was researching died at the end of the treatment so privacy was not an issue. I got 70 odd pages of medical notes, post mortem, correspondence - even the little chart the nurse used to plot temperature. Lots of very technical medical terms though, not easy to understand. The admissions register was heavily redacted so I could only see the entry pertaining to the person I was looking for.

So it's worth asking. Google the hospital, see what trust it falls under or which university if it's a teaching hospital. Email their archives and ask, giving as much info as you have regarding the dates of treatment and whether the person concerned is dead or alive.

They might say no, but there's no harm in asking.

I obtained records from the 1930s. I applied through the local archives that held the documents. There wasn’t much at all. I just had to fill in an application form, pay a fee and supply the death certificate.

If the person they concern is deceased then it potentially is possible. Data protection would apply if they are still alive.

You may need to provide evidence of your relationship to the patient, but it's worth asking.

Do you know where the hospital records are held? Are they in an archive or hospital?
Is the person a direct relative? Are they still alive?

You can apply to have the records, if in an archive the archive can apply to the NHS for you to have access to just those records, this though will depend on many factors and whether you can prove who you are and the person in question is dead along with a reason for access.

I used to assist the compliance officers in an archive and requests were frequent, sometimes NHS said yes, sometimes no

I was the chlld. Perhaps I have the wrong website?

I was the chlld. Perhaps I have the wrong website? do you mean you were the child in the 1940s records you are searching?

If so you can still request the, but again you need to find out where the records are held (the will still belong to the NHS) and then request that you are given permission to see the files.

My records were created in 1948 to approx 1952.
I wouid appreciate any information from the
Norfolk and Norwich Hospital (old site)
St Stephens St.
Norwich.

OK, so I had a look at the National Archives website, and found that the archives are at Norfolk Record Office, but this does not include any patient records for 1944-1948, apart from registers of operations and registers of private patients only. If either of these is relevant, you can contact the Record Office to ask for info. As I said earlier, you are likely to need to prove your identity, and there is also likely to be a research fee. The e-mail is [email protected].

Good luck!

I would question any fee for data, I’m not sure that technically they can charge for this as the op has no other way of accessing the record

fir general research if you can’t visit the office to view records, that would be different

but charging for information about your own data from NHS records would be controversial & I’ve not known any archives charge in this way ( though obviously some may try and do this)

There are circumstances when a fee can be charged, it’d be doubtful that ops request fits that category though

They're quite likely to have been destroyed. Medical records are not archived forever, ours are usually earmarked for destruction after 20 years

The problem is that most of us who have accessed historical medical records have done so for a third party, someone who is not us.

I am not sure that the process for accessing your OWN medical records, however distant, is the same. If you are talking about a parent's medical records, then it's possible if you can prove that parent is now deceased.

But your first step is speaking to the NHS trust or archives and establishing whether the records still exist, and what their processes are for accessing.

The problem is that most of us who have accessed historical medical records have done so for a third party, someone who is not us.

i used to search the records as part of my work, for both those requesting there own records & those wanting records of ancestors - when the records “ weren’t open for public access”

a lot of interesting research, from searches due to birth date discrepancies or court records for spent convictions