The patient portal messaging crisis (9 December 2024)

Summary

One of the most transformative changes to the US health care system in the last few decades has been the widespread adoption of electronic health record (EHR) systems and online patient portals. The patient portal has improved patient access to medical records and facilitated direct communication between patients and their health care teams, improving patient satisfaction, enhancing health care use and increasing treatment adherence.

The implementation of online patient portals has altered clinical practice workflows considerably, allowing the streamlining of interappointment communication. However, direct messaging between patients and their health care team is also having a negative impact on healthcare professionals. Increasing reliance on portal messaging as a primary form of communication and more patients using portals increased the volume of messages being sent. Work associated with portal messaging has fallen primarily on doctors, and many of them end up using time outside of clinical work hours to respond. Limited access to appointments has led to more complex and time-consuming messages. This trend is causing higher levels of staff burnout and female doctors are disproportionately affected. This article looks at the issues and potential solutions.