Vital Signs: Using Patient Portals to Help Manage Your Health

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When you visit a health care organization’s website you may notice that you have the ability to manage your health care and view your online health record through a patient portal. Stemming from legislation that necessitates that patients have timely electronic access to various elements of their health information, patient portals give patients access to information about their health and care at hospitals in the Northeast Kingdom and across the nation.

As you can see in the table, patients may be able to find reports or results from certain health care providers including lab results, X-rays, and prescribed medications in their patient portal. Although not all aspects of your medical record may be available through a patient portal, as portals are not designed to be a detailed medical record, any information in the patient portal is required to be secure and convenient for you to access whenever you need to do so.

“The patient portal can be an excellent resource,” said Holly McCormack, Chief Nursing Officer at Cottage Hospital in Woodsville, NH. “Portals allow access to key elements of a patient’s medical record 24 hours a day. This allows the patient to take a more active role in their health care. From the comfort of their home, they can review notes, medication lists and results from a recent provider visit, thus empowering the patient.”

Empowered patients become more involved in their care and the planning of their care, which is essential to ongoing wellness. Long gone are the days where you should defer to the authority of health providers or hospitals, which has been shown to be less effective than making decisions in collaboration with your health care provider. Today, health professionals are striving to build relationships that focus on engaging you and helping you meet your goals by encouraging open communication about behaviors to ultimately facilitate better understanding or change.

A valuable component to this strategy is providing you with knowledge about you. We want you to be informed about your care. Research has shown that when you are able to see your own health data, you gain ownership of your wellness and you are better prepared to interact with your providers about your care.

The functionality of a hospital’s or health provider’s patient portal varies. Not all patient portals have all of the same features. Depending on the organization, patient portals may allow you to take care of basic medical needs such as requesting appointments, referrals, and prescription refills. They may also be a direct link to your provider by allowing you to send a quick note or even share your progress via the portal messaging functionality.

As you may have personally experienced, you are likely asked to fill out a variety of forms when you visit your provider. Some health care organizations are giving patients the ability to complete these forms via the patient portal, which can help ensure patients have a more meaningful visit with their provider. These advantages can only occur if patients use their provider’s portal.

Patient portals can help improve communication through understanding and empowerment, eliminate paperwork, allow you electronic access to your own health information, and promote increased efficiency for you and your provider. Sign up for or log in to your health provider’s patient portal today to see what features are available to you.