how might the implementation of the patient portal feature address some of the current issues

Implementation of patient portals demonstrated, among other positive changes within healthcare tech environment, the raise of patient payments by 4% to 8%. Including this feature into portal function set allows physicians to track down customers for unsettled bills.

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What do you need to know about patient portal implementation?

 · Patient Portal Implementation Improves Quality of Patient Care and Strengthens Preventive Care Patient Portal Increases Communication Between Patients and Providers Pediatric Clinic Uses EHR to Automatically Generate Clinical Quality Reports

How many patients have been registered on the patient portal?

 · Patient portal implementation is a complex process and is not only a technical process but also affects the organization and its staff. Barriers and facilitators occurred at various levels and differed among hospital types (eg, lack of accessibility) and stakeholder groups (eg, sufficient resources) in terms of several factors. Our findings underscore the …

What are the barriers to patient portal implementation?

 · Implementation of patient portals demonstrated, among other positive changes within healthcare tech environment, the raise of patient payments by 4% to 8%. Including this feature into portal function set allows physicians to track down customers for unsettled bills.

What features attract patients to a portal?

 · Results There was limited experience of portals and substantial convergence between patients and providers regarding concerns and potential benefits with an overall positive view. Four themes emerged: 1) the context in which patient portal use takes place; 2) the necessary conditions for use of a patient portal; 3) the implementation of a patient portal and …

What are the benefits and challenges of implementing a patient portal?

What are the Top Pros and Cons of Adopting Patient Portals?Pro: Better communication with chronically ill patients.Con: Healthcare data security concerns.Pro: More complete and accurate patient information.Con: Difficult patient buy-in.Pro: Increased patient ownership of their own care.

What are the features of a patient portal?

Patients choose their top 7 portal featuresScheduling appointments online.Viewing health information (e.g., lab results or clinical notes)Viewing bills/making payments.Checking prescription refills/requests.Filling out pre-visit forms (e.g., intake form)Sending messages to my care (healthcare provider) team.More items...•

What are the benefits of a patient portal?

What are the benefits of patient portals?Patient portals are efficient. ... Patient portals improve communication. ... They store health information in one place. ... Patient portals satisfy meaningful use standards. ... They improve data accuracy. ... Patient portals make refilling prescriptions easy. ... They're available whenever you need them.More items...•

How are patient portals implemented?

A Step-by-Step Guide to Implementing a New Patient PortalPatient portals have become a staple of the modern healthcare experience. ... Research different solutions. ... Look for the right features. ... Get buy-in from key stakeholders. ... Evaluate and enhance existing workflows. ... Develop an onboarding plan. ... Successful go-live.More items...•

What are the five main features of the new healthcare portal?

Five key features to look for in an EHR patient portalEasy to follow user interface. ... Messaging and communication. ... Registration. ... Scheduling. ... Enhanced security.

Do patient portals improve healthcare?

Engaging patients in the delivery of health care has the potential to improve health outcomes and patient satisfaction. Patient portals may enhance patient engagement by enabling patients to access their electronic medical records (EMRs) and facilitating secure patient-provider communication.

How can the patient portal affect patient satisfaction?

Early studies of patient portals reported patient benefits including enhanced satisfaction, better relationships with their care providers, more efficient medication refills, and improved understanding of their health information [3,4,11,13-16].

What is the nurse's role in implementation of patient portals in healthcare?

Nurses encourage patients to enroll in the portals, wear buttons to welcome questions from patients and their families, explain the portal's privacy and security features, and demonstrate how to look up test results, send and receive provider messages, and request prescription refills.

How do you improve patient portals?

Here are some ways to encourage patient enrollment:Include information about the patient portal on your organization's website.Provide patients with an enrollment link before the initial visit to create a new account.Encourage team members to mention the patient portal when patients call to schedule appointments.More items...•

How do you promote patient portals?

Seven tips on how to promote your patient portal Add a tag line to appointment cards, statements, newsletters, and other communication. An example: “Tired of playing phone tag? Sign up for the patient portal.” Change your practice's on-hold messaging to include information introducing the patient portal.

How do you optimize patient portals for patient engagement?

Make enrollment open to all patients. Have staff manage portal workflow and communication before engaging providers directly. Aim to establish efficient workflows and policies, and avoid burdening providers with troubleshooting during initial rollout. The whole staff should be involved in promoting the patient portal.

What is a patient portal?

Patient portal is a website providing 24/7 access service to patients’ personal health information across any device. With a username and password,...

What are the benefits of patient portals?

Apparently, patient portals as software providing easily accessible information to users can bring considerable benefits both to physicians and pat...

How patient portals create value for patients?

Patients’ presence on patient portals unlocks for them the opportunities to: schedule appointments hassle-freeimprove their health awareness with a...

What features should be included in a patient portal?

Patient portal developers should certainly pay attention to including the following features into the functionality package of their product to ach...

How does a patient portal affect health care?

This can be affected by multiple factors at the micro (eg, “individuals”), meso (eg, “re sources”), and macro (eg, “sociopolitical context”) levels [21]. Several implementation models are available, such as “The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR),” which is used in many studies as a guiding framework [22-24]. CFIR consists of 5 levels at which barriers and facilitators can occur during implementation: (1) technology-related factors (eg, “adaptability,” “complexity,” and “cost”); (2) outer setting (eg, “policy and incentives”); (3) inner setting (eg, “resources”); (4) process (eg, “engagement of stakeholders”); and (5) individual health professionals (eg, “individual’s knowledge”). In this model, patients are part of the “outer setting,” suggesting that the CFIR framework is aimed primarily at institutions [24]. Another example is the “Fit between Individuals, Tasks, and Technology” (FITT) framework, which is aimed at the adoption of IT [25]. The comprehensive model of Grol and Wensing [26] summarizes the barriers to and facilitators of change in health care practice at 6 levels: (1) innovation; (2) individual professional; (3) patient; (4) social context; (5) organizational context; and (6) economic and political context. McGinn et al [21] argue that the consideration of various stakeholder opinions can contribute to successful implementations. However, previous research mainly focused on perceptions of single stakeholder groups regarding patient portal implementation, such as physicians [27] or nurses [28]. This highlights the importance of identifying the opinions of many stakeholders during patient portal implementation. Furthermore, it remains unclear which factors are important in accomplishing change in the various groups [26].

How long were the patient portal interviews?

All interviews were performed by telephone and lasted for, on average, 20 min. Participants were first asked for their consent to make audio recordings of the interviews. Then, the purpose of the interview was introduced, and subjects were asked if they received the introductory email. This email was then briefly discussed such that the subjects were aware of the topics to be discussed. After that, questions were asked about participants’ characteristics, such as their age and work experience. To make sure an unambiguous definition of a patient portal was used, participants were asked what their definition of a patient portal was, and if necessary, it was complemented with our definition. Then, we asked them about their perceived barriers to and facilitators of patient portal implementation at all 6 levels [26]. If necessary, for example, if the question was unclear, the interviewer provided examples (and these were also sent per email). At the end of the interview, the participants were asked to suggest additional topics or issues, if any, that had not yet been covered. The interviews were in Dutch, and the questions in Multimedia Appendix 1are translations.

Why is patient centeredness important?

Patient-centeredness is an important element of high-quality care: effective communication between patients and their health care professionals , and information access can both contribute considerably to this [1]. According to the Institute of Medicine, “patients should have unfettered access to their own medical information” [2] to support them in taking control of their health (eg, using medical information to make informed health-related decisions) [2]. Information technology (IT) can play an important role in improving access to this information [3], and it also improves the participation of patients in their own care [4]. In health care, an increasingly popular way to facilitate this is by using patient portals [5]. Patient portals can be defined as “applications which are designed to give the patient secure access to health information and allow secure methods for communication and information sharing” [6], as well as for administrative purposes [7], and are mostly provided by a single health care institution [6,8]. These portals are often connected to the electronic health record (EHR) of an institution—defined as tethered patient portals [9]—to provide access to patients’ medical information [3,10-12]. Some institutions allow patient portals to facilitate communication between patients and health care professionals [3,6,12], view their appointments and provide patient education [11,13], share information [12], request for repeat medication prescriptions [3], and provide tailored feedback [11,13]. Patient portals may have a range of functionalities that enable information exchange (such as having access to the EHR), which in turn may facilitate and improve the communication between the patient and the health care professional [11,14]. Previous research showed that patients are especially satisfied with access to information from the EHR and the list of their appointments [11]. Portal use can also have a positive effect on self-management of conditions [15-18], communication between patients and providers, quality of care [16,17] and participation in treatment [17]. Patient empowerment can also be improved; the accessibility of information can especially contribute to “patients’ knowledge” and their “perception of autonomy and being respected” [19]. On the other hand, effects on health outcomes are reported to be mixed [6]. In summary, patient portals can be important as they provide patients with access to their own medical information, enable interaction with their health care professionals [8], and aim to involve patients in their own care processes [1].

Is a patient portal a technical process?

Patient portal implementation is a complex process and is not only a technical process but also affects the organization and its staff. Barriers and facilitators occurred at various levels and differed among hospital types (eg, lack of accessibility) and stakeholder groups (eg, sufficient resources) in terms of several factors. Our findings underscore the importance of involving multiple stakeholders in portal implementations. We identified a set of barriers and facilitators that are likely to be useful in making strategic and efficient implementation plans.

What is a patient portal?

According to the primary definition, a patient portal is a website providing 24/7 access service to patients’ personal health information across any device. With a username and password, it enables patients to see the history of visits, test results, immunizations, make payments.

Why are patient portals important?

One of the top benefits of patient portal usage is dramatic increase of patient engagement due to opening various possibilities of involvement for patients in their healthcare upon patient portal activation and utilization.

Why is patient engagement important in healthcare?

According to the World Health Organization Report, patient engagement became an integral component of healthcare as patients once involved in the process are more capable of taking informed decisions in favor of healthcare awareness.

What is the ultimate requirement for compliance with HIPAA regulations?

It should be noted that the ultimate requirement for compliance with HIPAA regulations demands that all patient portal vendors ensure the restricted access to protected health information by enabling the usage of a secure username and the strong password for each individual user.

What is online appointment scheduling?

Online Appointment Scheduling is one of the most important features on patient portal as it enables patients, regardless of their actual location, to make an appointment on a certain date or on those time slots that suit patients best.

Why is it important to ignore medical standards?

The strict professional and legal standards set in the medical industry are also important to regard as ignoring them may disrupt software usage or restrict patient portal capabilities in addressing numerous patient engagement issues.

How many hospitals does Allscripts serve?

For instance, Allscripts Healthcare Solutions, Inc. (U.S.) caters its services to more than 2000 hospitals and claims connecting over 18 million (!) consumers. Their patient engagement solutions aim at satisfying the needs of healthcare providers, hospitals and health systems.

What are the themes of the Patient Portal?

Four themes emerged: 1) the context in which patient portal use takes place; 2) the necessary conditions for use of a patient portal; 3) the implementation of a patient portal and 4) the use of a patient portal for care.

What is public funded health care?

Publicly funded services are available to citizens such as visits to physicians and hospital and emergency department services. Some people have additional private or workplace-provided insurance that covers other services such as dental services and physiotherapy.

How can providers improve patient engagement?

Some key actions that providers should take to improve patient engagement is to implement proactive and engaging features as well as promote and expedite portal use . There are a variety of benefits providers gain from portals such as efficient and effective communication channels with patients, greater self-care initiative from patients, and higher patient satisfaction.

Why is it important to have more control over your own health?

Having patients be more aware and have more control over their own health is necessary to ensure better patient outcomes and quality of care. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) state on their website these intentions as their primary reason for emphasizing patient engagement in Stage 2 Meaningful Use requirements under the Medicare and Medicaid EHR Incentive Programs.

Can older people access their health information through a portal?

Often, the older population may not be as tech-savvy with regard to accessing their health data through a patient portal. ONC suggests training these patients to use the tools and services available through a portal.

Is patient portal expanding?

Currently, patient portals are expanding not only nationwide but also across the globe. A press release from Frost & Sullivan emphasizes the high adoption rate of patient portals in Africa.

How can portals help patients?

Yet, if we can get patients to use them, portals have a lot of potential benefits. Allowing patients to access their records can make them more informed. Asynchronous communication can be more efficient. Having a patient write down their concerns in their own words rather than relying on a third party can improve accuracy. Sending test results electronically can be more timely.

How many portals do patients need?

A patient should only need one portal – a comprehensive one maintained by his or her primary care physician (PCP), who shares data with all those specialists and hospitals, gets timely updates, and is great at keeping records.

Why don't patients sign up for a portal?

I often ask patients why they don't sign up. Some are worried about privacy; others don't enjoy using computers, forget their passwords, or just don't see the benefits. They aren't thinking ahead to that unplanned emergency department visit where a portal would let them pull up their medication, allergy, and problem lists on their phone for the doctor to see. Many patients are simply more comfortable calling to make appointments and leaving messages. Old habits are hard to change.

Is it better to send test results electronically?

Sending test results electronic ally can be more timely . However, the current state of the art needs work. A big problem is that portals are not standardized and often don't talk to each other.

How many steps are involved in the implementation of a patient portal?

The implementation of patient portals involves different steps to be followed- from research to final implementation and execution of them as a system. Here are six steps to implement a patient portal:

Why do patients use patient portals?

The patient portals eliminate the need for a phone call or multiple phone calls by patients to communicate with their physician, since these portals incorporate a secure messaging system that makes communication easier between them.

What are the benefits of a patient portal?

By providing easily accessible health information, a patient portal gives considerable benefits to both patients and doctors. One of the remarkable benefits of a patient portal is patient engagement, which allows patients to actively engage in their healthcare.

How many patients are required to use the patient portal?

Also, the law requires every practice to have 5 percent of its patients using the patient portal. Once a practice fulfills this requirement, its portal must be secure and flexible to use. Moreover, to comply with federal privacy requirements, the EHR vendor an organization, selects must ensure that patients access their clinical data through an encrypted connection.

What is a patient portal?

Patient portals are designed to help patients securely view their health data, consult a healthcare provider, schedule their appointments, and do more to be active participants in their health care process.

Why is patient portal important?

A patient portal’s importance is also due to its 24-hour access to patients to communicate with their physicians anytime, ask questions, schedule appointments, review notes, and establish a closer relationship with them.

How does portals help patients?

By allowing patients to schedule appointments online, request prescription refills, and do more, portals automate every practice-related task. This results in the reduction of manual administrative tasks allowing front-office staff to help doctors provide better care to patients.

When did PHMG start patient portal?

PHMG launched the patient portal in early 2010. As a first step, the physician champion piloted the portal for about 6 months before it was implemented in one clinic at a time. According to the physician champion, implementation was “easier than expected because everyone was already comfortable with eClinicalWorks, ...

What are the challenges of the portal?

One major challenge with the portal is the multiple step registration process . Patients provide their e‐mail address at the front desk and are given a password to register from home. Some patients fail to complete the registration process after leaving the clinic. Remembering and managing passwords and managing family accounts are also challenging for patients. For example, a parent may log in for one child and then ask questions about a second child. For providers and staff, a challenge is that there is no way to know whether a Web‐enabled patient actually uses the portal and there are no read receipts to confirm that patients have read a message.

Why is PHMG monitoring?

Messaging is monitored periodically to ensure that communication with patients is succinct and user-friendly.

How many clinics does PHMG have?

PHMG is an independent medical group with 11 clinics in southwest Idaho, provides both appointment‐based and urgent care. PHMG has 46 health care providers (including 12 mid‐level providers) and averages 200,000 patient visits per year. About half of PHMG’s patients are appointment‐based and half are urgent care. The practice specializes in:

What is the PHMG strategy?

PHMG had a strategy of ensuring that patients hear about the portal from multiple sources during each clinical visit. To execute this strategy, PHMG used several methods of communication, including:

Why is it persuasive to use a portal?

They found that it is particularly persuasive when providers encourage patients to use the portal because patients trust providers and value their opinions. One provider says he reinforces a patient’s use of the portal by closing all messages with “Thanks for using the portal.”.

When did PHMG implement EHR?

In 2007 PHMG implemented an EHR system, eClinicalWorks, as part of a strategy to improve quality of care and facilitate coordination of care across its multiple clinic locations. In preparing for implementation, PHMG proceeded with:

What happens when registration is completed prior to an appointment?

When registration is completed prior to an appointment, patients spend less time in the waiting room and more time engaged in their care.

What are the Academy materials for EHR?

Is your EHR vendor using Academy materials? Several EHR companies have signed licensing agreements with the Academy, allowing them to incorporate Academy patient education materials into their EHRs. These materials include more than 90 downloadable handouts about common eye-related issues, 3-D animations that illustrate standard procedures and treatment options, and educational videos that detail common ophthalmic conditions. “We integrated this content with our EHR system so when a patient receives their clinical summary, they also receive educational information based on their diagnosis. We can also add information such as supplemental brochures, customize information, or include links that redirect patients to the AAO website or our contact lens distributor for more information,” said Ms. Mullaney. For more information, including a list of participating EHR vendors, go to: http://store.aao.org/ehr-integration-information.html.

What are the advantages of EHR?

Are patient education materials available through your EHR system? “One advantage of our EHR system is the ability to right click and send anything we have in writing through the portal to our patients. Every relevant education piece is not only saved to a patient’s chart but is also sent to the portal. Before our patients leave the office after an appointment, we tell them that we will be sending this information to their portal account. When they get home, they can read it at their leisure and share it with their family or friends. And included on every brochure at our office is a notice that says that the brochure is also available through the patient portal,” said Ms. Mullaney.

Can you screen registration information for bad data?

Screen registration information for bad data. “Our patients can complete their registration and update their information online, but we review it before it is accepted into our EHR—it is not a live interaction where patients can update the system,” said Ms. Woodke. “We want to make sure that the data is valid before accepting it. If something is not entered or updated correctly in registration, it could hold up our claims or cause other problems that can affect the patient and the practice.”

Can patients access treatment plans online?

And now, with a portal, patients can access these materials online.

Does Asheville Eye Associates have a satisfaction survey?

Asheville Eye Associates has a patient satisfaction survey built into their portal. “Satisfaction surveys are included with every e-mail that we send to our patients, including questions about our portal. We have had excellent feedback from everyone who has responded about the ease of our portal’s use. For the most part, our transition into portal use has been very smooth,” said Ms. Fridl.