This position paper presents the role of laboratory test results in traditional general practice and provides a recommendation for responsible sharing of results with patients for improved safety, efficiency and outcomes. This paper looks at the relationship between the laboratory, the general practitioner consultation, the patient, safety and general practice capacity. We suggest changes in the traditional practice of communicating laboratory test results whereby normal or abnormal results are made available to patients as soon as they become available. We also endorse the opinion that using online tools such as email or text messages could enhance the provision of rapid access to laboratory test results for patients.
BackgroundPatients with higher health literacy enjoy better health outcomes and are more compliant with treatment. Health literacy is a product of memory, reason and imagination. Patients who can access their records have potentially more memory (knowledge) and make less phone calls to and have less consultations with their GP, practice nurse, HCA and other professionals.AimThe study aims to measure the knowledge that twenty Bangladeshi patients with poor English have of their medical history before and after access to their electronic record.Method55% of patients at Thornley House have access to their medical records. A simple questionnaire was given to 20 Bangladeshi patients before and 5 months after access to their electronic record. The questionnaires recorded the patients’ knowledge of their medical histories. The scores of the completed before and after questionnaires were compared to see if record access had increased patients’ knowledge.ResultsFive patients completed before and after questionnaires. Each achieved a higher score after record access. The differences in scores for the five patients were 2, 5, 1, 10, and 1, respectively.ConclusionHealth literacy for patients is similar to medical literacy for doctors. It requires knowledge, skills and attitudes. We will see whether record access can increase knowledge. Further studies might measure whether that increased knowledge improves skills and attitudes.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.