Personal health records, patient portals, and mental healthcare

Abstract

Why is a clinical psychologist studying patient portals and personal health records? As an evidence-based clinician, Dr. Carolyn Turvey pursued a research program of developing technology-delivered, home-based psychotherapy for depressed elders. Her initial focus was elders with chronic disabling illness, and she soon became aware of enormous gaps in coordination of care for complex chronic illness. One solution to these gaps was to provide patients and their caregivers electronic access to their health information and to allow them to share this information between their treatment team members. The development of patient portals, electronic portals that allow patients online access to their provider’s medical record, empowers patients with information and increased their ability to make informed choices in how they receive their care. However, the ability of mental health patients to read their complete medical record is controversial with some providers claiming this may hurt the therapeutic relationship. Others fear they will be less candid in their clinical notes. Dr. Turvey discusses the pros and cons of providing patients full access to their clinical notes, concluding that mental health providers must be transparent about the care they provide their patients and work as equal partners in promoting patient health. Patient portals are increasingly becoming the hub between the provider electronic health record and patient home monitoring through either wearable devices or patient-reported outcomes that can sync with the provider medical record. Portals serve as the bridge between clinic and home and, when harnessed creatively, can serve to promote patient self-management between sessions and maximize patient and provider collaboration in promoting patient health. Providing patients access to their health information is an important essential step in providing truly patient-centered care.