By necessity, people who are living with a chronic condition are more familiar with the healthcare system than those who are not

 

Heather Mack, MobiHealthNews

As a natural extension of that relationship, these same people are also more in tune with the technology available to improve their engagement with their health, a new poll from health IT company CDW Healthcare shows.

Building on last year’s efforts to examine what’s driving, influencing and presenting barriers to the patient engagement space, CDW surveyed 200 patients and 200 providers (physicians and physician assistants) to assess the impact of digital tools and communication outreach efforts between the two.

All patients surveyed were chronic – defined as having been to the doctor six or more times in the past year. Of this group, 70 percent said they have become more engaged with their care in the past two years, representing a 13 percent increase from 2016. In the past year, 74 percent of patients joined a patient portal (a nearly 30 percent jump from 2016), which resulted in 69 percent speaking with their healthcare provider more often and 69 percent of respondents accessing their healthcare information online. full article