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Focus on PHR Utilization
More and more, employers and health plans are recognizing the critical role of the personal health record (PHR) in helping consumers take an active role in their healthcare. We talked to Chris Donovan, WebMD director of product management, and David Rowe, WebMD vice president of consumer marketing, about how organizations can increase PHR utilization and to share some best practices from WebMD clients.
What are some important elements to improving PHR utilization?
Chris Donovan: Automatically populating data in the PHR is critical. We simply can’t require consumers to enter complete, accurate medical data themselves. The good news is that everything is headed towards auto-population.
We already have the ability to import medical and pharmacy claims data as well as lab results into individuals’ PHRs. And our new Personal Health Monitoring service allows consumers to upload data from home medical devices such as blood glucose meters or blood pressure cuffs directly into their WebMD Health RecordSM. Then they can easily monitor the data and share it with their provider. In a recent study, more than two-thirds of consumers wanted this type of service1 .
Our leading clients are already auto-populating their PHRs, and they’re seeing the advantages. While auto loading claims information isn’t perfect, it can be a valuable source of health history information when handled correctly. We’ve taken a number of steps to use claims data to provide meaningful, accurate health history information to consumers. As data is imported into their PHR, they receive an automatic message that reminds them to login to their PHR, see what has been imported, check for accuracy, and evaluate what it means. It guides their response by providing links to related content and resources, and in that way it becomes “actionable information.”
What about sharing data with providers’ electronic medical records (EMRs)?
CD: As electronic medical records (EMRs) from providers become more commonplace and incorporate industry interoperability standards, we are prepared to import provider data directly into patients’ PHRs. We’re activity involved with the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT), and Dr. Phil Marshall, WebMD vice president of product strategy, is a member of the standards board. This is the organization developing the criteria that will establish the industry standards to make widespread data interchange possible.The WebMD Health Record can already upload a continuity of care document (CCD) into a patient’s PHR. We’re working to help bring the industry to a point where individuals can go to their provider’s EMR portal and transfer the EMR directly into their personal record.
In the meantime, we enable consumers to share all or part of their PHR with providers through a secure online ID. This is a great way for employers and health plans to encourage PHR utilization and help their populations make more efficient, cost-effective use of their healthcare providers. Consumers can also manage a family member’s account with their permission. The consumer can specify information as sensitive or read-only to retain complete control of the record.
Are there other capabilities organizations should be incorporating to increase utilization?
CD: Our clients are realizing that portability is very important. Consumers want to know that they can take their PHR with them if they change their employer or health plan. They’re much more likely to use a PHR that will truly be a lifelong record of their health and that they don’t have to start over each time they make a life change. Employers and health plans are finding that the portable PHR is a competitive advantage that consumers value.
We’ve made portability extremely easy to implement. For people who already have a WebMD Health Record through their employer or health plan, it takes three clicks to make their account portable. Then they can move their record to another WebMD account offered through a new employer or plan, or they can access the record through WebMD.com. We’ve really focused on making the user experience simple and engaging.
What are some of the best ways for organizations to communicate the benefits of the PHR?
David Rowe: Communication is so important for your PHR to succeed. We see two categories of communication: One is broad communication to your entire population about the benefits of PHRs; the other is targeted communication to specific segments. In general, targeted messages are more relevant than broad messages, but together they form a comprehensive communication plan.
For broad communication, our leading clients are keeping the message simple: Healthcare is complex and the PHR helps consumers simplify the process. Even if they’re working with multiple providers, pharmacies, and labs, they can easily have all their health information at their fingertips and own it forever. We’ve also seen clients have great success when they leverage the general awareness around healthcare reform that the media is creating, especially right now, to provide a framework for their own initiatives.
For targeted communication, clients succeed when they analyze the issues certain segments are encountering and address them directly. For instance, email can target gender and age, using appropriate images and subject lines to address consumers who may be caring for aging parents or young children. Our clients who are importing claims data can create targeted messages based on things like frequency of healthcare usage or multiple medications. The email asks consumers to confirm updates to their record and then draws them in with links to related information and health management tools.
For more information contact your account manager.
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