Question

According to your text, the term ePatient has been a term used to describe patients who are active in their healthcare. In today’s world, epatients have electronic resources which assist them in taking an active role in their health and wellbeing. ePatients are typically engages and develop a collaborative relationship with their healthcare providers. You will discuss the following concepts: What ethical concerns do you have about the sharing of health data online? Discuss reasons why clinicians may be reluctant to change their current practice to accommodate the principles of participatory medicine. Defend or refute the following: Patients should have real-time access to all information in their health records, including narrative notes.

Answer 1

An e- patient is a health consumer who participate fully in his/ her medical care,primarily by gathering information about medical conditions that impact them and their families,using the internet and other digital tools.

Ethical concern on sharing health data online: When patients health data are shared or linked without the patients knowledge,autonomy is jeopardized.The patient may conceal information due to lack of confidence in the security of the system having their data.As a consequence,their treatment may be compromised.

Participatory Medicine is a movement in which networked patients shift from being mere passengers to responsible drivers of their health,and in which providers encourage and value them as full partners.In this system there is the changing patient- doctor relationship in the care process.The clinicians may be reluctant to accommodate the participatory principles,in which the active involvement of the patient in all aspects of their care.This transformation of the role of modern patients,and their vastly increased use of social media,is already starting to influence all of the medicine,from the patient- doctor relationship to data collection,knowledge building and sharing,and even clinical research.Internet with its profound effects derive from the fact that while previous technologies have been fully under doctors control, the internet is equally in the hands of patients.Such access is redefining the roles of physician and patient.

Patients access to all informations in health records,including narrative notes. Most patients think reading their own EHRS would be a great way to increase collaboration with their physicians but very limited patients were likely actually to open and view their files.

• Open notes is also beginning to deal with the challenges of low literacy,which may require giving patients relatives access to certain accounts. Doing this will enable those closest to patients to provide doctors with important information that might not be communicated otherwise and could likely lead to more accurate assessments.
• Studies on the issue of patient access have also suggested that patients that enter their own data into their charts tend to have more accurate and comprehensive records.Those who view their own personal records will request changes, whether that means updating recently consolidated information or asking for changes to existing prescriptions.
• All data entered through an online medical portal by patients and their loved ones will likely need to be vetted by a medical professional,which could take substantial time away from patient care.
• Another concern related to how patients might react to the information provided in their health records.Will they understand everything the doctor has submitted without an explanation?Will they be angry if there are comments or notes in the record that the patient doesn’t consider an issue.?