If you are treated in China and plan to continue care — or file a claim — back home, the single most important thing to understand is this: records are far easier to get while you are still in the hospital than after you have left the country. Once you are home, you are dealing with a Chinese-language records office across a time zone, often without a local phone number or ID that they will accept. So the work happens now, in person, before you fly out. This guide tells you exactly what to ask for, in what format, and how to make sure it is actually usable by your own doctor and insurer.
Why you have to do this before you leave
Chinese hospitals do keep your records, but retrieving them remotely is hard. Requests usually have to be made in person, often by the patient with passport in hand, and the medical records office (病案室, bìng’àn shì) and the radiology department keep separate files. Imaging in particular is frequently handed to you at the time of the scan — on a CD, on physical film, or via a kiosk printout — and is not always re-issuable later. Discharge summaries are typically generated when you check out and not before.
The practical rule: collect everything at the time of service, in person, and check it before you leave the building. Treat your departure date as a hard deadline for paperwork, not just for travel.
The records that actually matter
Your home doctor and your insurer want different things, but there is heavy overlap. Here is what to request and why each one earns its place in your folder.
| Record type | Why you need it | How to request it |
|---|---|---|
| Discharge summary (出院小结) | The narrative your home doctor reads first: what happened, what was found, what was done, what to do next | Ask the ward/attending physician on the day you check out; confirm it is signed and stamped |
| Diagnosis report / certificate (诊断证明书) | The formal, stamped statement of diagnosis — often required by insurers and for follow-up referrals | Request from the treating doctor; ask for the hospital seal (公章) |
| Lab results (化验报告 / 检验报告) | Bloodwork, cultures, biomarkers — needed to interpret your case and avoid repeat testing at home | Collect from the lab or via the hospital app/kiosk; print the full panels |
| Imaging files + radiology reports (影像 + 影像诊断报告) | The scans themselves and the radiologist’s written read — your doctor may want to re-review the images, not just trust the summary | Ask radiology for digital DICOM files, plus the printed/PDF report |
| Pathology report (病理报告) | For any biopsy or surgery: the definitive tissue diagnosis | Request from pathology; note reports can take days, so ask about timing early |
| Pathology slides / blocks (病理切片 / 蜡块) | For cancer cases: lets a second lab re-examine or re-stain the tissue at home | Formally request from the pathology department; this is a separate, slower process |
| Itemized bills + fapiao (费用明细 + 发票) | Required for reimbursement; see the dedicated fapiao guide | Request at the cashier before leaving |
| Prescriptions / medication list (处方 / 用药清单) | So your home doctor can continue or safely switch your medications | Ask the prescribing doctor; have generic (not just brand) names noted |
For cancer or any case involving a biopsy, the pathology slides and paraffin blocks deserve special attention. A written pathology report tells your home oncologist what was found; the physical slides and blocks let a second pathology lab independently re-read or re-stain the tissue. Requesting the physical material is a separate, often slower, formal process — start it as early as you can, ideally well before discharge. If you are weighing your diagnosis or treatment plan, our note on getting a second medical opinion in China covers how that material gets used.
Get imaging as digital DICOM, not just film
This is the detail people regret missing. Imaging in China is commonly issued on CD, physical film, or a kiosk-printed sheet. Film and printouts are fine for a quick look, but they are not what a modern radiologist or specialist wants to work with at home — and many home laptops no longer have a CD drive at all.
Where it is available, ask radiology specifically for the digital DICOM files (the raw image data, the same format used by hospital PACS systems worldwide). DICOM lets your home doctor load the full study into their own viewer, scroll through every slice, and measure things directly — far more useful than a flat photo of a single frame. Practical points:
- Ask whether you can get the study on a USB drive or via a download link, not only a CD.
- Get the radiologist’s written report as well — the images and the read are two different deliverables.
- Verify the disc or drive actually opens before you leave; a corrupted or empty CD discovered at home is effectively a lost scan.
Tip: Before you leave the hospital, open every CD or USB on a laptop and confirm the imaging actually loads and matches your name and study date. A blank or unreadable disc is common, and it is trivial to fix at the counter that day — and nearly impossible to fix from another country.
Translation: usually needed, and the name has to match
Almost everything is issued in Chinese by default. Your home doctor will need at minimum the diagnosis, discharge summary, and key reports in English to act on them, and your insurer will almost always require an English translation to process a claim.
The detail that quietly sinks claims and causes confusion at hospitals abroad: the name on the translated records must match your passport exactly. Chinese records are sometimes registered under a transliteration, a partial name, or even a local contact’s name if someone helped you register. Check that the name, date of birth, and passport number are consistent across every document before you rely on them.
A few translation realities:
- Insurers often want a translation that is clearly attributable (and sometimes certified) — a rough phone-camera translation usually is not accepted for claims.
- Medical terminology matters. A mistranslated drug, dose, or diagnosis is worse than no translation. Use someone who handles medical text, not general documents.
- Keep the original Chinese alongside the English. Your home doctor’s records team may need the source, and insurers frequently ask for both.
A folder you can hand to your doctor
Organize as you go, not at the airport. A clean, complete folder is the difference between your home doctor acting on day one and sending you back for repeat tests. Here is the checklist to clear before you leave China:
- Discharge summary (出院小结), signed and stamped
- Diagnosis report / certificate (诊断证明书) with hospital seal
- All lab results (化验 / 检验报告) — full panels, not summaries
- Imaging on digital DICOM (USB or download), confirmed openable
- Radiology reports (影像诊断报告) — written reads for each scan
- Pathology report (病理报告), if any biopsy or surgery
- Pathology slides/blocks (切片/蜡块) requested, for cancer cases
- Itemized bills + fapiao (费用明细 + 发票) for reimbursement
- Prescriptions / medication list with generic drug names
- English translations of the key documents
- Name, DOB, and passport number consistent across everything
Keep both a physical copy and a scanned digital copy (PDF) of every paper document. Email the scans to yourself or store them in the cloud so a lost folder is an inconvenience, not a disaster.
Timing it around your departure
Sequence the slow items first. Pathology and any formal release of slides and blocks take the longest, so raise those at the start of your stay, not the day before your flight. Discharge summaries and diagnosis certificates are produced around checkout — build in a buffer day if you can, so you are not collecting critical paperwork an hour before a taxi to the airport.
If you came to China specifically for a procedure or screening, the same logic applies to a health check-up: ask up front how results and images are delivered and in what format, so nothing is left behind. And if any of this needs to be coordinated in Chinese with multiple departments while you focus on recovery, that hand-holding is exactly what our team does — see how we help.
FAQ
Can I just get my records emailed to me after I get home? Sometimes, but do not count on it. Many Chinese hospitals require in-person requests with your passport, and the medical records and radiology offices operate separately. Remote retrieval across a language barrier and time zone is unreliable. Collect everything before you leave.
What is DICOM and why does it matter? DICOM is the standard digital format for medical imaging — the actual scan data, not a photo of a film. It lets your home doctor load the full study into a proper viewer, scroll through all slices, and measure findings. Ask radiology for DICOM on USB or via download, in addition to any film or report.
Do I really need pathology slides, or is the report enough? The written pathology report is enough for many situations. But for cancer or any case where the diagnosis drives major treatment decisions, the physical slides and paraffin blocks let a second lab independently re-read or re-stain the tissue at home. Requesting them is a separate, slower process — start early.
Will my insurer accept Chinese-language records? Usually not on their own. Most insurers require an English translation of the diagnosis and key documents, and often want it from an attributable or certified source. Keep the original Chinese with every translation, and make sure the name matches your passport. See our fapiao and reimbursement guide for the financial paperwork.
The records are under a slightly different spelling of my name. Is that a problem? Potentially yes — for both your home doctor’s records and your insurance claim. Chinese registration sometimes uses a transliteration or partial name. Check that name, date of birth, and passport number are consistent across every document, and ask the hospital to correct mismatches while you are still there.
How far in advance should I start collecting? Treat your departure date as the deadline. Raise the slow items — pathology, slide/block release — at the beginning of your stay. Collect discharge summaries, diagnosis certificates, and final bills around checkout, ideally with a buffer day so you are not gathering critical paperwork on your way to the airport.