The Impact of Web 2.0 on the Doctor-Patient Relationship

2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernard Lo ◽  
Lindsay Parham

The hypothetical case of Mr. Jenkins illustrates innovations in digital health information technology that may profoundly change medical care and the doctorpatient relationship. The Internet contains enormous amounts of health information, and about threequarters of Internet users look online for health information. 1 Sometimes patients bring information they found on the Internet to their physicians. Physicians and patients can also now communicate by e-mail rather than by telephone or office visits, although these e-mail communications may not be integrated into the patient’s medical record. Furthermore, electronic medical records are slowly being adopted, particularly in hospitals and large integrated health systems. Funding to promote the adoption of electronic medical records (EMRs) has been included in the 2009 federal stimulus package under the Obama Administration.

2016 ◽  
Vol 125 (3) ◽  
pp. 495-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel L. Helsten ◽  
Arbi Ben Abdallah ◽  
Michael S. Avidan ◽  
Troy S. Wildes ◽  
Anke Winter ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The impact of surgery on health is only appreciated long after hospital discharge. Furthermore, patients’ perceptions of postoperative health are not routinely ascertained. The authors instituted the Systematic Assessment and Targeted Improvement of Services Following Yearlong Surgical Outcomes Surveys (SATISFY-SOS) registry to evaluate patients’ postoperative health based on patient-reported outcomes (PROs). Methods This article describes the methods of establishing the SATISFY-SOS registry from an unselected surgical population, combining perioperative PROs with information from electronic medical records. Patients enrolled during their preoperative visit were surveyed at enrollment, 30 days, and 1-yr postoperatively. Information on PROs, including quality of life, return to work, pain, functional status, medical complications, and cognition, was obtained from online, mail, or telephone surveys. Results Using structured query language, 44,081 patients were identified in the electronic medical records as having visited the Center for Preoperative Assessment and Planning for preoperative assessment between July 16, 2012, and June 15, 2014, and 20,719 patients (47%) consented to participate in SATISFY-SOS. Baseline characteristics and health status were similar between enrolled and not enrolled patients. The response rate for the 30-day survey was 62% (8% e-mail, 73% mail, and 19% telephone) and for the 1-yr survey was 71% (13% e-mail, 78% mail, and 8% telephone). Conclusions SATISFY-SOS demonstrates the feasibility of establishing a PRO registry reflective of a busy preoperative assessment center population, without disrupting clinical workflow. Our experience suggests that patient engagement, including informed consent and multiple survey modalities, enhances PROs collection from a large cohort of unselected surgical patients. Initiatives like SATISFY-SOS could promote quality improvement, enable efficient perioperative research, and facilitate outcomes that matter to surgical patients.


Author(s):  
Stephen Chidhau ◽  
Bismark Mutizwa ◽  
Tinashe R. Muzama

Amid ongoing research about, Digital Health Interventions (DHI) in Zimbabwe, is the largely overlooked impact of DHI to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. To contribute towards filling this knowledge gap, the study seeks to examine the DHI strategies that have been adopted to curb the inimical effects of COVID-19 in Zimbabwe. DHI such as telemedicine, use of social media, Electronic Medical Records (EMRs), Mobile Health (mHealth), and Healthcare Information Systems (HIS) have been disposed to curtail the spread of COVID-19. The limitations and hurdles crippling DHI are discussed extensively. This study adopts a qualitative research design, comprising personal and targeted interviews and documentary review. Preliminary findings are that DHIs are effectively working for employing routine and innovative forms of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to address health needs. However, the research noted that various factors such as corruption lack of funding, shortage of qualified workforce and medical expertise, and weak healthcare infrastructure are militating against robust deployment of DHIs. This study includes measures that can be adopted to address these challenges.


Author(s):  
Maria Magdalena Bujnowska-Fedak ◽  
Paulina Węgierek

The number of Internet users searching for health-related issues increases significantly every year. The aim of this study was to investigate whether and how the information about health and disease obtained from the Internet by patients influenced them and how different e-health services can affect the patients’ choice of the doctor. The research was based on a national survey conducted among 1000 Polish adults. The study was carried out with the use of the computer-assisted telephone interviews (CATI). The study showed that e-health facilities are increasingly affecting the patient’s choice of doctor. Among the highest rated factors, the possibility of setting the date of appointment online and practice’s own website were indicated. Information on health and disease obtained from the Internet influenced respondents in many areas. Almost half of health Internet users (HI-users) wanted to change their diet and increase healthy physical activity under the influence of health information obtained online. Regarding health decision making, health information obtained from the Internet caused 45% of HI-users to make an appointment to see a doctor, and 40% of them had questions concerning diagnosis and treatment. Information on health and disease obtained from the Internet undoubtedly affects patient behaviour and health decisions they make.


2015 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 533-555 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Cottiero ◽  
Katherine Kucharski ◽  
Evgenia Olimpieva ◽  
Robert W. Orttung

How effective is Russian state television in framing the conflict in Ukraine that began with the Euromaidan protests and what is its impact on Russian Internet users? We carried out a content analysis of Dmitrii Kiselev's “News of the Week” show, which allowed us to identify the two key frames he used to explain the conflict – World War II-era fascism and anti-Americanism. Since Kiselev often reduces these frames to buzzwords, we were able to track the impact of these words on Internet users by examining search query histories on Yandex and Google and by developing quantitative data to complement our qualitative analysis. Our findings show that much of what state media produces is not effective, but that the “fascist” and anti-American frames have had lasting impacts on Russian Internet users. We argue that it does not make sense to speak of competition between a “television party” and an “Internet party” in Russia since state television has a strong impact in setting the agenda for the Internet and society as a whole. Ultimately, the relationship between television and the Internet in Russia is a continual loop, with each affecting the other.


2010 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter L. M. Vasterman

The Digital Pillory: The impact of the Internet on the development of scandals The Digital Pillory: The impact of the Internet on the development of scandals This article explores the consequences of the changing public arena for the way scandals develop. Scandals, defined as a process of public outrage over a (presumed) transgression of the dominant morality, used to be the domain of the professional mass media. The Internet seems to offer a more level playing field for actors who want to trigger a scandal by disclosing compromising information. But what exactly is the role of the Internet in the different stages of a scandal; which type of actors are dominant and how do media and these websites interact? A qualitative and quantitative analysis of four recent Dutch scandals shows that the Internet, more specifically semiprofessional weblogs can indeed play an important role in exposing, accusing and denouncing the culprit. But the professional media are still very important; when they refuse to adopt a disclosure by bloggers the scandal fails. The role of the Internet users is mainly reactive, but the scale of outrage on the Internet fuels the scandal process.


2011 ◽  
pp. 273-285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alev M. Efendioglu ◽  
Vincent F. Yip

The number of Internet users around the world has been steadily growing and this growth has provided the impetus and the opportunities for global and regional e-commerce. However, as with the Internet, different characteristics (infrastructure and socio-economic) of the local environment have created a significant level of variation in the acceptance and growth of e-commerce in different regions of the world. Our research focuses on the impact of these infrastructure and socio-economic factors on e-commerce development in China and the findings provide insights into the role of culture in e-commerce, and the factors that may impact a broader acceptance and development of e-commerce in China. In this chapter, we present and discuss our findings, and propose some strategies for success for e-commerce in China.


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