Journal of medical Internet research
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J. Med. Internet Res. · Jun 2019
The Use of an Electronic Health Record Patient Portal to Access Diagnostic Test Results by Emergency Patients at an Academic Medical Center: Retrospective Study.
Electronic health record (EHR) patient portals provide a means by which patients can access their health information, including diagnostic test results. Little is known about portal usage by emergency department (ED) patients. ⋯ The data highlight the relatively low use of a patient portal by ED patients and existing disparities between patient groups. There can be wide lag time (months) between result/report availability and access by patients. Opportunities for improvement exist for both activation and more robust utilization of patient portals by ED patients.
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J. Med. Internet Res. · Jun 2019
An Internet of Things Buttons to Measure and Respond to Restroom Cleanliness in a Hospital Setting: Descriptive Study.
Restroom cleanliness is an important factor in hospital quality. Due to its dynamic process, it can be difficult to detect the presence of dirty restrooms that need to be cleaned. Using an Internet of Things (IoT) button can permit users to designate restrooms that need cleaning and in turn, allow prompt response from housekeeping to maintain real-time restroom cleanliness. ⋯ An IoT button system is a feasible method to generate on-demand request for restroom cleaning that is easy to deploy and that users will consistently engage with. Data from this system have the potential to enable responsive scheduling for restroom service and anticipate periods of high restroom utilization in a hospital.
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J. Med. Internet Res. · Jun 2019
Association Between Health Literacy, Electronic Health Literacy, Disease-Specific Knowledge, and Health-Related Quality of Life Among Adults With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: Cross-Sectional Study.
Despite the relatively high prevalence of low health literacy among individuals living with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), limited empirical attention has been paid to the cognitive and health literacy-related skills that can uniquely influence patients' health-related quality of life (HRQoL) outcomes. ⋯ Health literacy, but not eHealth literacy, was positively associated with generic HRQoL. However, both health literacy and eHealth literacy were positively associated with lung-specific HRQoL, with higher COPD knowledge indicative of lower lung-specific HRQoL. These results confirm the importance of considering health and eHealth literacy levels when designing patient education programs for people living with COPD. Future research should explore the impact of delivering interventions aimed at improving eHealth and health literacy among patients with COPD, particularly when disease self-management goals are to enhance HRQoL.