The Institute for Health Technology Transformation has released a report outlining the best strategies for using health IT to engage patients in their care, Healthcare IT News reports.
The report — titled, “Top Ten Things You Need To Know About Engaging Patients” — relied on input from health IT experts across the country.
Top 10 List
The top 10 strategies are:
Providing patients with online health tools that offer reminders and information about their diagnosis and treatments;
Connecting with patients through social networking sites;
Reaching out to older adults through online channels;
Providing caregivers with access to tools such as personal health records and online assessments;
Offering PHR tools maintained by a physician practice or hospital;
Accommodating patients’ use of smart phones and other mobile devices that can access health data;
Looking into technology that can improve the privacy and security of electronic health records;
Taking advantage of inexpensive communication outlets such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube;
Preventing financial concerns from hindering creative efforts to engage patients in health IT; and
Using technology to react strategically to changing health care payment models (Merrill, Healthcare IT News, 5/3).
According to the report, health care organizations that are focused on patient engagement will succeed under new health reform models such as accountable care organizations and patient-centered medical homes (CMIO, 5/4).
