Patients increasingly are using technology to share their health information with family or friends, and access to information is causing them to pay better attention to their care, according to a recent study.
Published this week in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, the research looked at patient use of OpenNotes, initially a one-year program that gave patients electronic access to medical notes written by their doctors.
Of the roughly 4,500 study participants, more than 55 percent said they would like the option of giving family or friends access to the notes, and 21 percent said they shared the information with others during the study period.
The health information was shared by about 56 percent of patients with a family member, friend or other caregiver. About 8 percent shared the data with another doctor, nurse or health professional, according to the study.
In addition, the study notes that patients who shared their medical information were also more likely to say they were taking better care of themselves and adhering more strictly to medications.
As healthcare institutions increase patient access to records and notes, it is likely that more and more patients will share their health information with others, the authors write. In addition, increased sharing of information will help to engage caregivers and family as "active members of the healthcare team."
"Open access to visit notes offers exciting opportunities to engage a patient's family and social support members, and now is the time to establish standards and develop the technology to open these portals," the authors conclude.
Glenn Steele, CEO of Danville, Pennsylvania-based Geisinger Health, recently praised the OpenNotes program at the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives annual fall forum.
"We have now opened up all of our progress notes, including notes that are written by our trainees, to all of our patients," Steele said. "And the amount of interest those patients have--the amount of activation they have shown in getting into their notes--has been amazing."
Patient advocate Regina Holliday also applauded programs that allow patients access to more information about their care, calling OpenNotes "rich with information" during an interview with FierceHealthIT.
To learn more:
- check out the study