The Need for Online Patient Portals
At a time when the digital has replaced the physical out of necessity, healthcare in the United States is proving itself to be well-equipped to handle this change.
Where physical appointments have been replaced by virtual visits, so too have providers embraced the need for change when it comes to managing patient healthcare. One of the main ways they have done this is by introducing patient portals.
Clearer Connection Between Provider and Patient
As the coronavirus has reduced the number of physical appointments personal doctors can manage without potentially spreading the disease, patient portals have become an ideal solution for helping patients feel connected to their health providers.
Portals have the ability to help patients:
- Monitor their own health and conditions
- Schedule appointments from any location
- Renew prescriptions online
- Access and download their personal health record from any location
- Connect with a healthcare team via secure mail
- View shared information from your visit, including physician’s notes, lab results, discharge summaries, and immunizations
This feeling of immediate connectivity and ability to communicate with physicians through secure messaging has broken down the barriers between patients and doctors, helping patients feel more valued and ensuring consistency of care. This ability to regularly discuss their conditions with their online provider helps patients become better educated, which in turn allows them to make the right decisions for their health on a daily basis.
Better Patient Education
As patients now hold the key to managing their own conditions, they can be more engaged in their own healthcare.
With the ability to read a physician’s notes following an online doctor visit, any information lost in translation or forgotten in the moment can be reviewed and analyzed by the patient, allowing them to become more informed and involved in their own healthcare.
By better understanding their conditions or symptoms, the patient can take the relevant steps to manage or overcome their health problems. And if they have any questions, they can simply jump on the portal and send a secure message.
Much More Convenient
For patients with chronic conditions, the portal is a game-changer. Requesting prescription refills and even referrals to specialists can now be done with the click of a button, which in turn increases the ease with which a patient can remain compliant with their treatment plan.
Likewise, if a patient ends up in an emergency department, being able to access their health record for allergy and medication information with the swipe of a finger will lead to swifter, better-targeted treatment.
And these improvements don’t just impact the patients: by reducing the workload on healthcare staff through a centralized portal, physicians have more time to spend with their patients, which in turn leads to a better experience for patients.
Patient portals have the ability to revolutionize each patient’s healthcare. There has never been a better time to engage with one.