Tag : Influenced

Philadelphia: Researchers found people who sign up for and use their healthcare provider's online portal differ in certain crucial features from those who do not use patient portals. This study was published in the journal, 'Medical Care.' According to the new research, led by Naheed Ahmed, PhD, MA, MPH, of NYU Grossman School of Medicine, "Our findings suggest that access to healthcare along with ongoing patient health needs influence usage of patient portal platforms." Having health insurance and establishing a relationship with a primary care provider (PCP) appear to be key factors in having a patient portal account. What factors contribute to disparities in patient portal use? Online patient portals have many benefits, including increased engagement in care and improved health outcomes. Yet most Americans do not use their healthcare provider's patient portal, or even sign up to create an account. Low rates of portal use are not simply explained by patient preferences or by a lack of Internet access. To explore factors affecting healthcare portal use, Dr Ahmed and colleagues performed an online survey using Amazon's Mechanical Turk crowdsourcing platform. Participants answered questions regarding whether and how they used an online patient portal to connect with healthcare providers. The survey addressed a range of other factors as well, including health status, access to and attitudes toward technology, and health literacy. The researchers used a technique called latent class analysis to identify the underlying factors influencing patient portal use, with adjustment for other characteristics. The analysis included survey responses from 489 participants. Initial analysis showed some qualitative differences between participants who d ...