Soon, hundreds of thousands of area patients will have fast and secure online access to their office-visit notes written by their health care providers.

UR Medicine and Rochester Regional Health are teaming up to share office-visit notes with its patients as part of a national movement known as “OpenNotes.”

Local health care leaders say patients achieve better health outcomes because the note-sharing helps them better recall the details of a visit.

"This now opens up the ability for patients to go in and see what their physicians, and their providers, have actually written about them when and if they have a question," said Dr. Michael Rotondo, URMC CEO.

Some 150 institutions across the country are getting on board with the OpenNotes movement.

Health care leaders say although the tool is available, it's not mandated.