Family practice web sites: new perspectives for patient care and health information?

نویسندگان

  • Tobias Freund
  • Michaela Freund
  • Cornelia Mahler
  • Ulrich Schwantes
  • Dominik Ose
  • Stefanie Joos
  • Joachim Szecsenyi
چکیده

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES To cater to the needs of informed and proactive patients in family medicine, health care providers could offer access to care and health information via practice Web sites. To determine the content and quality of family medicine Web sites, we performed a cross-sectional study on a large sample of family practices' Web sites in Berlin, Germany. METHODS After screening of all family medicine practices in Berlin for the provision of their own practice Web site, we determined the content and quality using a predefined checklist based on a review of literature. RESULTS Among 1,453 family practices in Berlin, only 211 (15%) had an accessible Web site. Online tools for appointment scheduling (17/211, 8%) or prescription ordering (8/211, 4%) were rarely provided. Approximately half of all Web sites (102/211) provided health information on a wide range of topics, with complementary medicine dominating. Transparency about the source and currentness of information and barrier-free design were identified as main areas in which there was a need for quality improvement. CONCLUSIONS Family physicians should be trained in quality requirements for Web sites and in how to use online solutions for practice reorganization.

برای دانلود رایگان متن کامل این مقاله و بیش از 32 میلیون مقاله دیگر ابتدا ثبت نام کنید

ثبت نام

اگر عضو سایت هستید لطفا وارد حساب کاربری خود شوید

منابع مشابه

Bringing Value-Based Perspectives to Care: Including Patient and Family Members in Decision-Making Processes

Background Recent evidence shows that patient engagement is an important strategy in achieving a high performing healthcare system. While there is considerable evidence of implementation initiatives in direct care context, there is limited investigation of implementation initiatives in decision-making context as it relates to program planning, service delivery and developing policies. Research ...

متن کامل

Evaluating the Implementation and Feasibility of a Web-Based Tool to Support Timely Identification and Care for the Frail Population in Primary Healthcare Settings

Background Understanding and addressing the needs of frail persons is an emerging health priority for Nova Scotia and internationally. Primary healthcare (PHC) providers regularly encounter frail persons in their daily clinical work. However, routine identification and measurement of frailty is not standard practice and, in general, there is a lack of awareness about how to identify and respond...

متن کامل

Involvement of Patients in Health Technology Assessment: Further Perspectives for Informing Decision-Makers

Health technology assessment (HTA) is an evaluative process used to inform technology-related policymaking in healthcare. Interest in involving patients in the HTA process is increasing. Patients can provide additional perspectives to those of other groups that are concerned with health technology. Information on patients’ perspectives is preferably obtained through reviews of published studies...

متن کامل

Improving Care for the Frail in Nova Scotia: An Implementation Evaluation of a Frailty Portal in Primary Care Practice

Background Understanding and addressing the needs of frail patients has been identified as an important strategy by the Nova Scotia Health Authority (NSHA). Primary care (PC) providers are in a key position to aid in the identification of, and response to frailty as part of routine care. Unlike singular chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension which garner a disease-based appr...

متن کامل

ذخیره در منابع من


  با ذخیره ی این منبع در منابع من، دسترسی به آن را برای استفاده های بعدی آسان تر کنید

عنوان ژورنال:
  • Family medicine

دوره 42 7  شماره 

صفحات  -

تاریخ انتشار 2010