Survey: Consumers willing to switch doctors for medical data access

A recent survey shows that a large number of US consumers (41 percent) are willing to switch doctors in order to get complete access to their medical records. And patient education and increased patient engagement is to blame for this. Doctors, although are not showing the same enthusiasm.

The survey covered over 9000 people in nine countries. Few key findings of the report are:

• Only About one-third (36 percent) of consumers have access to their EMR
• Amongst those who have, more than 57 percent have taken ownership of their medical records by self-tracking personal health information, including health history such as physical activity and health indicators such as blood pressure, weight etc.

The report also revealed that 4 out of 5 consumers (84 percent) believe they should have full access to their medical records. On the other hand, US doctors believe that patient should only have limited access to their records. Only one-third (36 percent) of doctors think it is fine to provide full access to medical data to consumers.

Kaveh Safavi, MD, Managing Director of Accenture’s North America Health Business says, “The rise of meaningful use mandates and a growing trend of self-care among consumers is shifting the role of an EMR from a mere clinical repository to a platform for shared decision-making among consumers and doctors.”

Safavi further adds, “When consumers are part of the record-keeping process, it can increase their understanding of conditions, improve motivation and serve as a clear differentiator for clinical care.”

Category: Healthcare