India has no definitive timeline for the maintenance of Medical Records. Section 24A of the Consumer Protection Act 1986 and the Limitation Act 1963 dictate that outpatient medical records should be maintained for at least 2 years whereas records of inpatients and surgery patients should be maintained for 3 years. The Medical Council of India guidelines dictates that medical records should be maintained for 3 years from the commencement of treatment in a standard proforma. However, in many situations like medico-legal cases, records may be needed even after 3 years.
At present, different hospitals follow their own periods of time for the maintenance of medical records. Under such circumstances, it is imperative for the government to frame guidelines regarding the duration of retaining medical records to prevent unnecessary controversies and litigations. Source: Thomas J. Medical records…
