In this quality improvement study of 16,005 patients from 3 diverse US sites, new shared access registration was unchanged; however, use of shared access functionality among registered care partners increased. Care partners logged in more frequently, viewed more laboratory results and clinical notes, and scheduled more visits after the demonstration.
Patient Portals
Advancing cancer care through digital access in the USA: a state-of-the-art review of patient portals in oncology
Patient portal use among patients with cancer has increased significantly in recent years. This state-of-the-art review seeks to address and analyse literature involving patient portal use by patients with cancer and their care partners.
Study: Leveraging a patient portal to help patients formulate their healthcare goals
This study tested self-directed tools for older adults with chronic conditions to identify healthcare priorities. Website engagement was low, but 26% completed an Epic previsit questionnaire. Most found it helpful, and physicians noted it facilitated end-of-life care discussions.
Shared access to adults’ patient portals: A secret shopper exercise
Our secret shopper exercise unveiled noteworthy variability in the experiences of 18 individuals attempting to grant or receive shared access to the patient portal, highlighting multiple barriers and facilitators to shared access. The findings underscore the imperative for cross- and intra-organizational collaboration aimed at learning from the diverse experiences of patients, care partners, clinicians, and staff, and disseminating best practices.
Patients need access to their medical records—now
Despite initial professional resistance and policy delays, countries like Denmark, Estonia, Sweden, and the US have demonstrated that the benefits of full record access outweigh the risks. Patients globally are calling for interactive, user-friendly portals to access and correct their medical records, emphasizing that this is crucial for self-care, particularly in the post-pandemic era where healthcare access has declined.
Patient portals fail to collect structured information about who else is involved in a person’s care
“Shared access” uses separate identity credentials to differentiate between patients and care partner portal users. EHR vendors must recognize that both patients and care partners are important users of their products and acknowledge and support the critical contributions of care partners as distinct from patients.
Real-time electronic patient portal use among emergency department patients
These findings suggest that real-time patient portal use during ED encounters has increased over time, but disparities exist in portal access that mirror trends in portal usage more generally. Given emergency medicine’s role in caring for medically underserved patients, there are opportunities for EDs to enroll and train patients in using patient portals to promote engagement during and after their visits.
Do patients who read visit notes on the patient portal have a higher rate of “loop closure” on diagnostic tests and referrals in primary care? A retrospective cohort study
Compared to no portal registration, the odds of loop closure were 20% higher in tests/referrals for patients with a portal account, and 40% higher in tests/referrals for note readers, after controlling for sociodemographic and clinical factors. However, important safety gaps from unclosed loops remain, requiring additional engagement strategies.
Users’ experiences with online access to electronic health records in mental and somatic health care: Cross-sectional study
[…] This study aimed to provide insight into the impact of PAEHR [patient-accessible electronic health records] on patient care, particularly for those with mental health conditions, and to inform clinical strategies to improve the use of PAEHR in health care settings. The transition toward EHR accessibility may present health care professionals with a unique opportunity to change how they think and write about patients.
Co-designing an initiative to increase shared access to older adults’ patient portals: Stakeholder engagement
We partnered with 3 health care organizations to co-design an initiative that aimed to increase shared access registration and use and that can be implemented using existing patient portals. Educational materials are publicly available at Coalition for Care Partners.
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