Your right to see your medical records and know your diagnosis
Health Act; Digital Health Act; Constitution Art. 35 · sources read 5 Oct 2026
Yes. Every hospital or clinic must tell you your health status, your treatment options and their benefits, risks and costs, in a language you understand. You also have a right to see and get a copy of your health records: ask the facility in writing.
- Deadline
- A written answer to your complaint within 3 months
- Where
- The hospital or clinic that treated you; complaints to the facility head, then the Kenya Health Professions Oversight Authority (KHPOA)
What you need
- Your ID, so the facility can confirm who is asking
Steps
- Ask your doctor or nurse to explain your condition, your treatment options, and the benefits, risks and costs of each. They must tell you.
- To see or get a copy of your records, write a request to the hospital or clinic that holds them.
- If something in your records is wrong or out of date, ask the facility to correct it.
- If you are refused, complain to the facility head. You must get a written answer within 3 months, and if it is not resolved, the Kenya Health Professions Oversight Authority must act.
Watch out
- A provider may hold back your health status only where there is substantial evidence that telling you is against your best interests.
- The facility must check your identity before releasing records, so someone else cannot collect them without your authority or a court order.
Who this covers
- Every patient at any health facility, public or private.
- For a child, the parent or guardian gets the information and records.
Official sources (3)
- Health Act, 2017 (No. 21 of 2017), Revised Edition 2022 machakosassembly.go.ke · read 3 Oct 2026
- Constitution of Kenya, 2010 new.kenyalaw.org · read 3 Oct 2026
- Digital Health Act (No. 15 of 2023), version of 24 November 2023 new.kenyalaw.org · read 5 Oct 2026