Changing your surname seems deeply personal
At first glance, changing your surname may seem like something deeply personal. For some, it is a romantic choice linked to marriage, civil partnership or divorce. For others, it is a practical step or a way to reshape their identity.
Yet during a conversation with Marianne Snijders, a former employee of the Pathology Department, a bigger question emerged: what consequences can a change of surname have for your medical records when healthcare systems and personal data are not always linked properly?
This topic came up during a conversation about identity. I explained that I want to choose my own surname, because I will soon be moving abroad. I have wanted to choose my own surname for a long time, and emigration feels like a natural moment to do so without too much administration.
Surname, Identity and Relationships
In many relationships, the question of a surname plays a role. In couples therapy, this can become a topic of conversation through love communication: which name do you carry together, and what does that name mean for your identity as an individual, as an intimate relationship, or as a family?
Behind this personal decision there can sometimes be an unexpected practical reality. In certain situations a change of name may influence how medical information is retrieved or linked.
Research into patient identification shows that changing personal details, such as surnames, can indeed play a role in missed matches or duplicate patient records in medical systems.
A name can change, a citizen service number cannot
In the Netherlands people can change their surname free of charge when they marry, register a partnership or divorce. On personal request it is also possible to change a given name or surname. Specific rules apply.
One piece of information always remains the same. The citizen service number, the BSN. This number is unique and stays linked to the same person throughout their life.
In healthcare the BSN is intended to identify patients correctly and to link medical data safely. Healthcare providers are required to verify the identity of patients when providing care.
How it can become complicated in practice
In practice, however, systems are still often searched using combinations of name, date of birth or address. This can happen for example in urgent medical situations. When a name changes and earlier medical records were registered under a different name, this can create additional complexity in some systems.
The Dutch government also distinguishes between the use of a partner’s surname and your official surname at birth, your birth name. For example, many people use their partner’s surname in daily life, while their birth name continues to exist legally.
This difference can influence how data is recorded across different systems.
Why medical history matters so much
In medical specialties such as pathology, patient history plays an important role. When tissue is examined to make a diagnosis, earlier medical information can help specialists interpret the findings correctly.
Previous diagnoses, treatments or examinations can provide clues about whether an abnormality is new or possibly a metastasis from a previous disease.
Studies on electronic health records show that identification errors can occur when patient data are not linked unambiguously.
What can go wrong with medical records
This can lead to situations in which records belonging to the same person are not recognised as one file, or in which information from different people is unintentionally merged.
For medical professionals, this can mean they are looking at the wrong patient record, or only at the record created after the surname change. This has, in some cases, led to a misdiagnosis, even though the patient’s death could have been prevented.
My conversation with Marianne Snijders shows that this problem cannot simply be traced back to individual mistakes. Work pressure, different software systems and administrative processes also play a role.
More standardization needed
Patient matching is matching records to the right patient. Patient matching research shows that differences in name usage, misspellings, moves and name changes can all be factors that make linking medical records more complex.
Therefore, researchers are increasingly advocating more standardization and the use of unique identifiers in medical data exchange.
With unique identification in medical systems, it becomes easier to correctly link records from the same person, regardless of changes in name or address.
What does this mean for people who want to change their name?
Our conversation shows that a name change is not necessarily problematic. For many people, it is part of important life moments such as getting married, getting divorced or reshaping their identity.
In discussions about relationships and identity, for example in couples therapy or coaching sessions that use Love Communication techniques, choosing a name can become a meaningful step in how partners relate to one another.
At the same time, it is wise to be aware of practical consequences. Especially if someone has had medical treatments in the past or needs regular care.
Practical focus points
It may help to check personal information at health care facilities carefully. It may also be wise to explicitly mention previous medical examinations, especially if they took place at other hospitals.
It is also important to ensure that identification through the Citizen Service Number is recorded correctly. That fixed identifier is exactly what helps medical information to be linked to the right person.
A change of surname does not automatically become a problem because of this, but it is something that should be handled with awareness and care.
The most important lesson
The most important lesson from the conversation is that, ideally, identity in healthcare should be linked to the person themselves, and not only to a name and date of birth.
Research on patient identification confirms that changes in personal data, including surnames, can influence the reliability of medical data matching.
This does not mean that people should not change their name. It simply means that being aware of how personal data is recorded can help keep medical information traceable and complete.
Concluding
A surname is more than an administrative detail. A name is connected to your identity and your family history.
Sometimes financial dependence also plays a role, or pressure from family and the people around you. A surname can also matter in intimate relationships, for example when partners are thinking about children, or when a family wants to use one shared surname to express their sense of connection.
Questions about surname choices often arise in conversations during couples therapy or relationship coaching sessions that use techniques from Love Communication.
At the same time this interview shows that personal choices sometimes intersect with larger systems, such as the way medical data is recorded.
Do you and your partner need support in deciding which surname to use, or with other relationship issues? Book a free exploratory conversation to see how I can support you both in the best possible way.
Would you like to watch the full conversation? Watch the video below.
