Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://doi.org/10.1186/1741-7015-4-18
Title: Use of email in a family practice setting: Opportunities and challenges in patient- and physician-intiated communication
Authors: Virji, A
Yarnall, K.S.H
Krause, K.M
Pollak, K.I 
Scannell, M.A
Gradison, M
Øtbye, T
Keywords: access to information
adult
aged
article
clinical trial
computer program
controlled clinical trial
controlled study
convenience sample
doctor patient relation
e-mail
feasibility study
female
general practice
health care access
health education
health insurance
human
human experiment
Internet
interpersonal communication
medicaid
medical information system
medical practice
normal human
pilot study
preventive medicine
questionnaire
randomized controlled trial
Electronic Mail
Family Practice
Information Dissemination
Patient Education as Topic
Physician-Patient Relations
Physicians, Family
Preventive Medicine
Issue Date: 2006
Publisher: BMC
Citation: Virji, A, Yarnall, K.S.H, Krause, K.M, Pollak, K.I, Scannell, M.A, Gradison, M, Øtbye, T (2006). Use of email in a family practice setting: Opportunities and challenges in patient- and physician-intiated communication. BMC Medicine 4 : 18. ScholarBank@NUS Repository. https://doi.org/10.1186/1741-7015-4-18
Rights: Attribution 4.0 International
Abstract: Background: Electronic mail (email) has the potential to improve communication between physicians and patients. Methods: We conducted two research studies in a family practice setting: 1) a brief, anonymous patient survey of a convenience sample to determine the number of clinic patients receptive to communicating with their physician via email, and 2) a randomized, controlled pilot study to assess the feasibility of providing health education via email to family practice patients. Results: Sixty-eight percent of patients used email, and the majority of those (80%) were interested in using email to communicate with the clinic. The majority also reported that their email address changed less frequently than their home address (65%, n = 173) or telephone number (68%, n = 181). Forty-two percent were willing to pay an out-of-pocket fee to have email access to their physicians. When evaluating email initiated by the clinic, 26% of otherwise eligible patients could not participate because they lacked email access; those people were more likely to be black and to be insured through Medicaid. Twenty-four subjects agreed to participate, but one-third failed to return the required consent form by mail. All participants who received the intervention emails said they would like to receive health education emails in the future. Conclusion: Our survey results show that patients are interested in email communication with the family practice clinic. Our feasibility study also illustrates important challenges in physician-initiated electronic communication. The 'digital divide' - decreased access to electronic technologies in lower income groups - is an ethical concern in the use of email for patient-physician communication. © 2006 Virji et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.
Source Title: BMC Medicine
URI: https://scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/handle/10635/178358
ISSN: 1741-7015
DOI: 10.1186/1741-7015-4-18
Rights: Attribution 4.0 International
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