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If you want to know how to write an effective email to hospital executive when you have a loved one critically ill in intensive care, to get access to medical records, and get better care and treatment, stay tuned! I’ve got news for you. 

My name is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and I have another quick tip for families in intensive care. 

So, here’s an email that we’ve written together with one of our clients earlier in the year to get access to medical records and get better care and treatment for their loved one in intensive care. Obviously, the email is de-identified. I’m not going to mention any name. Let me read it out to you.

“Dear [Hospital CEO],

My brother has been an inpatient in your ICU since the 10th of January 2024. We’ve been asking for access to my brother’s medical records as my father and I are current health care proxies for my brother. 

So far, our requests have been ignored and that’s very concerning in light of the fact that the first clinical judgment from the ICU team was grossly incorrect. 

The ICU team thought he was “brain dead”, which turned out to be a gross misjudgment, and thankfully, the brain death tests turned out to be negative.

We should have had access to the medical records right from the start so that we could have shared those medical records with other third independent parties who can provide a second opinion in such dire life or death situations. 

Obviously under state law, we have the right to access the medical records at any time if we choose to., especially in light of the fact that the ICU team has asked us to give consent to medical treatment such as the tracheostomy, etc.

In order to make informed decisions, we need this access to the medical records ASAP (and we have linked to the relevant state laws in the relevant state. This was a client in the US.) 

Any further delays from your esteemed hospital to delay access to the medical records is a breach of Missouri state law. 

Any further delays in granting access to my brother’s medical records makes us wonder if the hospital has medical information to hide.

In the year of 2024, it should be no more complicated than sending me a username and a password to the “MyChart” app and getting access to the medical records through the app. 

Now, just keep in mind. Let’s just say the client would take the case to court. The court would say to the hospital, “Give us access to the medical records now.” Do you think that the hospital would deny access to medical records to the court? Think about that. By hospitals not giving you access to medical records, clearly, they have something to hide. It should be extremely worrying for you. Your alarm bells should go off.

The email continues, 

Why is there a delay? Does the hospital have clinical information to hide? Is there an agenda? 

We would think there isn’t an agenda and therefore the hospital can just send all medical records through the “MyChart” app to make the healthcare of our brother and son transparent.  

We still haven’t seen the reports of the brain CT scans, MRI scans, blood results, medications, etc.

Mr. Hospital CEO, time is very critical for my brother as we speak. We are not happy with the care he has been receiving, especially as of late. His blood pressure is very concerning at the average of the last few days. It said around 73/42 which is life threatening, by the way.

We understand that the doctors are telling us that blood pressure medication would possibly damage the kidneys worse than they are at right now, with the 15-point mark out of 60 which is at the tipping point of kidney failure.

Now, bear in mind, such a low blood pressure would also cause kidney damage, because the kidneys are not being perfused. There are inotropes and vasopressors that can be used to increase blood pressure that cause vasoconstriction that could also damage the kidneys. But the reality is, our client’s brother was dying in that situation if nothing had been done. So, it’s negligent not to save someone’s life. That is medical negligence. 

The email continues, 

“Our request to consider medication to be provided such as dopamine, dobutamine or milrinone which are inotropes to stabilize the pressure without further damaging his kidneys have been ignored without even an explanation of why this would not be an option at this stage of urgency. 

Finally, the ICU doctor has entered the DNR (do not resuscitate) code in my brother’s charts against our will and consent, which means that they will deny my brother’s CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) or dialysis if his life depends on it, which is getting near at this stage according to the conversation. 

Not to mention, the ICU doctor was very rude yesterday morning after just stepping in my brother’s room. The ICU doctor explained that CPR can break his ribs, which we understand is a possibility. However, if CPR and dialysis is not performed, if his life depends on it, then he will surely die, which would be at that point, a stage where he would not have any chance to survive and against the family’s wishes. 

We do hereby strongly request that the DNR code to be removed immediately as we are seeking guardianship in a quick emergency manner to gain my brother’s charts in order for us to even get a second opinion from a third party, which we are so much entitled to and deserve as a family. 

We are very concerned as we feel that the above statement has been something that the ICU doesn’t feel is important whatsoever in this critical and life or death situation. We are sure that your esteemed hospital is in a position to meet our expectations and we’re looking forward to a favorable response and access to the medical records by 5 p.m. today.”

Now, as part of this email, we have also linked to the relevant state laws when it comes to DNR and access to the medical records because that is simply medical negligence, and could result in a patient’s death, which is highly concerning and completely inappropriate.

But unfortunately, that is the reality that some hospitals are doing, and it is so unethical, and it needs to be called out. In this situation, the client did get access to the medical records, and they did remove the DNR because at the end of the day, they have no rights to do so. 

What I have been saying here over and over and over and over again, 99% of families in intensive care do not question. They don’t know what they don’t know. They don’t know what to look for.  They don’t know what questions to ask. They don’t know their rights and they don’t know how to manage doctors and nurses in intensive care. 

Also, hospitals are extremely good at pretending they can do whatever they want. Nothing could be further from the truth. The minute you challenge them, they will retreat and back paddle, which is what’s happened in this situation. 

So, use this email at your perusal, at your discretion, and just replay the video and write it out yourself. I know there are people watching this that are in very similar situations.

We have helped hundreds of clients over the years and members of our membership for families in intensive care here at intensivecarehotline.com as part of our consulting and advocacy. I have worked in critical care nursing for 25 years in three different countries where I’ve worked as a nurse manager for over 5 years. I’ve been consulting and advocating for families in intensive care since 2013 here at intensivecarehotline.com. 

I can confidently say that we have saved many lives with our consulting and advocacy for families in intensive care and their loved ones. You can verify that if you look up our testimonial section at intensivecarehotline.com and if you look up our podcast section at intensivecarehotline.com. You can listen to some client interviews that we’ve done verifying the work that we’ve done. 

That’s why we created a membership for families of critically ill patients in intensive care, and you can become a member if you go to intensivecarehotline.com if you click on the membership link or if you go to intensivecaresupport.org directly. In the membership, you have access to me and my team, 24 hours a day, in the membership area and via email, and we answer all questions intensive care related. In the membership, you also have exclusive access to 21 eBooks and 21 videos that I have personally written and recorded that will help you to make informed decisions, have peace of mind, control, power, and influence, so that your loved one will get best care and treatment always. 

I also do one-on-one consulting and advocacy over the phone, Zoom, WhatsApp, Skype, whichever medium works best for you. I talk to you and your families directly. I handhold you through this once in a lifetime situation that you simply can’t afford to get wrong. I also talk to doctors and nurses directly, on your behalf or with you. When I talk to doctors and nurses directly, I ask all the questions that you haven’t even considered asking but must be asked when you have a loved one critically ill in intensive care. 

We also do medical record reviews in real time so that you can get a second opinion in real time. We also do medical record reviews after intensive care if you have unanswered questions, if you need closure, or if you are suspecting medical negligence.

All of that you get at intensivecarehotline.com. Call us on one of the numbers on the top of our website or simply send us an email to support@ intensivecarehotline.com with your questions. 

If you like my videos, subscribe to my YouTube channel for regular updates for families in intensive care. Click the like button, click the notification bell, comment below what you want to see next, what questions and insights you have from this video, and share the video with your friends and families. 

I also do a weekly YouTube live where I answer your questions live on a show and you will get notification for the YouTube live if you are a subscriber to my email newsletter at intensivecarehotline.com or if you are a subscriber to my YouTube channel here. 

Thank you so much for watching. 

This is Patrik Hutzel from intensivecarehotline.com and I will talk to you in a few days. 

Take care for now.