As health information transparency increases, patients may perceive important errors in their visit notes, and inviting them to report mistakes that they believe are very serious may be associated with improved record accuracy and patient engagement in safety.
Studies
Covid-19 as Innovation Accelerator: Cogenerating Telemedicine Visit Notes with Patients
Over the past decade, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center has been committed to sharing clinical notes with its patients. Now, as the Covid-19 pandemic is accelerating the adoption of telemedicine, the hospital’s primary care practice is implementing an initiative called OurNotes. In addition to inviting patients to review notes before and after a visit, this effort also engages patients before the telemedicine visit by soliciting important prework information through an electronic form, and by enabling coproduction of the visit note.
Sharing Psychotherapy Notes with Patients: Therapists’ Attitudes and Experiences
Evidence suggests that the practice of sharing clinicians’ notes with patients via online patient portals may increase patient engagement and improve patient–clinician relationships while requiring little change in providers’ workflow. Authors examined clinical social workers’ experiences and attitudes related to open psychotherapy notes using focus groups and telephone interviews.
The Views and Experiences of Clinicians Sharing Medical Record Notes With Patients
In this web-based survey study of 1628 clinicians, most viewed note sharing positively (74% agreed that it is a good idea and 74% viewed shared notes as useful for engaging patients in their care), and 37% of physicians surveyed reported spending more time in documentation. Physicians with more years in practice and fewer hours spent in patient care had more positive opinions overall.
Empowering patients and reducing inequities: is there potential in sharing clinical notes?
Patients who read their clinical notes via online patient portals (‘open notes’) report that doing so engages them actively in their care, improves their sense of control over their health and enhances safety. In several surveys, patients who are older, less educated, non-white or whose first language is not English report even greater benefits than do their counterparts. However, for many reasons, persons from these demographic groups are less likely to use health portals than other patient populations.
Dermatopathologists’ Experience With and Perceptions of Patient Online Access to Pathologic Test Result Reports
In this survey study of 160 dermatopathologists, 57% reported that they have been contacted by patients about their pathologic test result reports.
Embracing the new age of transparency: mental health patients reading their psychotherapy notes online
Our pilot findings indicate that most patients who read open therapy notes find them valuable for understanding and engaging in their mental health care, with minimal adverse effects.
A patient and family reporting system for perceived ambulatory note mistakes: experience at 3 U.S. healthcare centers
Partnering with patients and families to obtain reports on inaccuracies in visit notes may contribute to safer care. Mechanisms to encourage greater use of patient and family reporting systems are needed.
An Opportunity to Engage Obstetrics and Gynecology Patients through Shared Visit Notes
Objective: To assess obstetrics and gynecology patients’ interest in reading their ambulatory visit notes, identification of documentation errors, and perceptions of sensitive language through a quality improvement (QI) initiative.
Methods: Beginning April 2016, as part of a QI project all obstetrics and gynecology patients (except family planning) were invited to read their ambulatory visit notes and provide feedback using a patient reporting tool codeveloped with patients. Two physicians with safety expertise reviewed all patient-reported errors over the first 16 months.
Patients Managing Medications and Reading Their Visit Notes: A Survey of OpenNotes Participants
We examined patients’ perceptions of how note reading affects factors related to medication adherence. In addition, we sought to understand their engagement with online medication lists and their willingness to participate in keeping those lists correct and up to date.
Except where otherwise noted, the content by OpenNotes is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
