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The Patient Portal—Help or Hindrance?
Just Want to Talk | Last Active: 21 hours ago | Replies (258)Comment receiving replies
Appreciate this topic being addressed especially the "where is the privacy in all this?" comment above per who has access to what across different health care faculties. Early on that was not supposed to happen. One element I didn't see in the above was the number of characters limit when sending to the health care professionals for responses or updates. At times I feel like I'm back in grad school with the time required for editing per what I want to say in one message. I've actually started writing drafts in WORD because the system can count the letters and spaces ... then I copy and paste my "final draft" into the portal.
Replies to "Appreciate this topic being addressed especially the "where is the privacy in all this?" comment above..."
At this point in my life, it is a huge benefit that all of my providers have access across facilities and clinics - I worry more about getting the right care with the least time and energy.
Some benefits:
I do not need to repeat my (lengthy) medical history every time I see a new provider.
All medications are listed.
They know my prior surgeries - I don't need to carry a list for filling out new forms.
When I am in the hospital, they can see not only all of my medications, but all of those I cannot take.
Scan & lab test results are shared between clinics, saving time, energy & money in not having to repeat them. And I don't have to go to the imaging center, pick up a CD and carry it to the doctor - they see it in advance.
Not everyone in a facility has access to all the records - the appointment center, lab techs, receptionist, referral clerk, even the PT, can only see that which is pertinent to their jobs.
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@joaf37
I do same thing, do a draft and try make my message as precise as possible. I find if my message address specific questions / problem, I get better responses.
Found this article from AMA, "What doctors wish patients knew about using patient portal"
https://www.ama-assn.org/practice-management/digital/what-doctors-wish-patients-knew-about-using-patient-portal
Has some good advice, only issue I have is with advice about if the message is long, they suggest maybe time to schedule an appointment. With long wait times for appointments, most people want answer now.