Zarcadoolas Christina, Vaughon Wendy L, Czaja Sara J, Levy Joslyn, Rockoff Maxine L
CUNY School of Public Health at Hunter College, New York, NY, USA.
J Med Internet Res. 2013 Aug 26;15(8):e168. doi: 10.2196/jmir.2507.
Electronic health information (eHealth) tools for patients, including patient-accessible electronic medical records (patient portals), are proliferating in health care delivery systems nationally. However, there has been very limited study of the perceived utility and functionality of portals, as well as limited assessment of these systems by vulnerable (low education level, racial/ethnic minority) consumers.
The objective of the study was to identify vulnerable consumers' response to patient portals, their perceived utility and value, as well as their reactions to specific portal functions.
This qualitative study used 4 focus groups with 28 low education level, English-speaking consumers in June and July 2010, in New York City.
Participants included 10 males and 18 females, ranging in age from 21-63 years; 19 non-Hispanic black, 7 Hispanic, 1 non-Hispanic White and 1 Other. None of the participants had higher than a high school level education, and 13 had less than a high school education. All participants had experience with computers and 26 used the Internet. Major themes were enhanced consumer engagement/patient empowerment, extending the doctor's visit/enhancing communication with health care providers, literacy and health literacy factors, improved prevention and health maintenance, and privacy and security concerns. Consumers were also asked to comment on a number of key portal features. Consumers were most positive about features that increased convenience, such as making appointments and refilling prescriptions. Consumers raised concerns about a number of potential barriers to usage, such as complex language, complex visual layouts, and poor usability features.
Most consumers were enthusiastic about patient portals and perceived that they had great utility and value. Study findings suggest that for patient portals to be effective for all consumers, portals must be designed to be easy to read, visually engaging, and have user-friendly navigation.
面向患者的电子健康信息（eHealth）工具，包括患者可访问的电子病历（患者门户网站），正在全国范围内的医疗保健系统中迅速普及。然而，对于门户网站的感知效用和功能的研究非常有限，弱势群体（低教育水平、种族/族裔少数群体）消费者对这些系统的评估也很有限。
本研究的目的是确定弱势群体消费者对患者门户网站的反应、他们感知到的效用和价值，以及他们对特定门户网站功能的反应。
这项定性研究于2010年6月和7月在纽约市对4个焦点小组中的28名低教育水平、说英语的消费者进行了调查。
参与者包括10名男性和18名女性，年龄在21 - 63岁之间；19名非西班牙裔黑人、7名西班牙裔、1名非西班牙裔白人以及1名其他种族。所有参与者的教育水平均未高于高中，其中13人接受的教育低于高中水平。所有参与者都有使用电脑的经验，26人使用互联网。主要主题包括增强消费者参与度/患者赋权、延长就诊时间/加强与医疗服务提供者的沟通、识字和健康素养因素、改善预防和健康维护，以及隐私和安全问题。消费者还被要求对一些关键的门户网站功能发表评论。消费者对增加便利性的功能最为满意，例如预约和重新开处方。消费者对一些潜在的使用障碍表示担忧，如复杂的语言、复杂的视觉布局和较差的可用性特征。
大多数消费者对患者门户网站充满热情，并认为它们具有很大的效用和价值。研究结果表明，为了使患者门户网站对所有消费者都有效，门户网站的设计必须易于阅读、视觉上吸引人且具有用户友好的导航。
