Ticked Off Over Tics

With all of our medical records stored online, with only a few clicks, we can view our patient's full medical histories. I routinely check the snapshot page which lists all of the patient's medical problems. I don't do that just to be nosy, but to also help take better care of the patient.

Doctors are human and make mistakes. A good nurse will call the doctor if the doctor forgot to address a problem or made an order that could harm the patient. An example would be if the doctor forgot to write an order for blood sugar checks for a diabetic patient or ordered huge amounts of IV fluids for a dialysis patient. If the doctor makes a mistake like that, it is the nurse, not the doctor who gets in trouble. The buck stops with the nurse.

The diagnosis page, though, also provides me with endless entertainment. We have one patient right now who has a history of "recurrent pregnancy loss." Another patient has "unspecified hemorrhage of newborn." You're probably wondering what is so entertaining about those sad medical problems. The answer is that both of those patients are male.

Because I get my health care from my employer, I can also access my health records. It violates some rule to look at one's own records, but I don't care. I'm as entertained by my records as by my patient's records. Like some of the patients, I have my own rogue diagnosis. According to the official records, I have "tic disorder." I'm sure that I don't. Well, I don't think I have it. Is it possible to have tics and not know it?

I've asked two friends to tell me honestly if they have ever noticed if I have tics. They said they have never noticed that. I'm left wondering if the doctor confused me with someone else or if perhaps at a doctor's appointment, I was twitching and totally unaware. The doctor who labelled me is gone, so I can't ask him about it. I wonder if it is possible for me to erase a diagnosis and how much trouble would I get in for altering my medical record, assuming they caught me?