Sources from health departments said that the trial program for planning and promotion of the uniform patient records for medical patients had been completed.

As of December 1st, 2007 all hospitals in Guangzhou shall stop printing their own patient records. However, those patient records already in use will still be valid.

The trial standardization program aims to regulate diagnosis and treatment, save money for patients and make it more convenient for patients to receive treatment. It stipulates that with a uniform patient record, a patient shall not be required to buy records while receiving treatment in various hospitals.

The uniform patient records are valid in all the hospitals belonging to the municipal and district governments. Other special hospitals engaged in treatment of psychotic disorders, eye diseases, mouth diseases and tuberculosis shall make relevant adjustments accordance with the program guidelines and on the basis of their practical situation.

There are thousands of hospitals in Guangzhou. In the past, hospitals only recognized patient records created by their own facility. As a result, whenever a patient would go to another hospital, they would have to buy another patient record.

This practice not only wasted patients money but also caused trouble for doctors for it was hard for them to learn about the patients past history, as a result dissatisfaction arose among both doctors and patients.