Most patients want access to medical imaging records, but majority aren’t getting it: Small survey
More than half of a couple hundred patients who completed a new survey, 52%, ran into trouble when trying to see their medical images and reports or share same with their care team.
At the other end of the satisfaction equation, provider vexation will only be compounded by a related finding: Some 85% of respondents reported feeling positive about the overall healthcare experience when it included access to medical images or other flavors of transparency.
The image-sharing platform supplier PocketHealth conducted the survey, receiving completed questionnaires from 242 individuals in the U.S. and Canada.
The Toronto-based company further found more than 70% of patients actively researching their specific health conditions and 83% of self-researchers feeling “more empowered.”
In its executive summary of the survey report, PocketHealth states that the general sentiment to emerge is that healthcare consumers “want to be a partner rather than just a patient.”
Other findings included 33% of patients receiving incorrect test results or erroneous medical reports—and close to half, 46%, saying they’ve experienced a misdiagnosis.
In a press release promoting the study report, PocketHealth co-founder and CEO Rishi Nayyar suggests COVID-19 fatigue is driving patients’ desire for proactivity in their own health and care.
“The demand for transparency in the healthcare system is evident as patients are hungry for the tools and information that give them more control of their health—a trend accelerated by the pandemic,” Nayyer says. “By placing patients at the center of their healthcare journey, providers are able to strengthen the partnership between physicians and patients leading to better outcomes.”
The report says little about survey methodology, leaving unspecified data qualifiers like respondent characteristics and in which care setting(s) participants were treated prior to being surveyed.
Press release here, full survey report available in exchange for contact info here.
Dave P. has worked in journalism, marketing and public relations for more than 30 years, frequently concentrating on hospitals, healthcare technology and Catholic communications. He has also specialized in fundraising communications, ghostwriting for CEOs of local, national and global charities, nonprofits and foundations.