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AHRQ Research Studies
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Research Studies is a compilation of published research articles funded by AHRQ or authored by AHRQ researchers.
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1 to 2 of 2 Research Studies DisplayedAhmed N, Brown J, Parau C
Bridging the digital health divide: characterizing patient portal users and nonusers in the U.S.
The purpose of this study was to 1) review variations in demographics between patient portal users and nonusers; and 2) review variations in health literacy, patient self-efficacy, and technology utilization and attitudes between patient portal users and nonusers. The researchers collected data from Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) workers between December 2021 and January 2022. 489 Participants completed an online survey with questions on their attitudes about media and technology, attitudes about their health, their access to technology, health literacy, patient self-efficacy, and patient portal use. The study results indicated qualitative differences between users and nonusers of patient portals as related to type of neighborhood, income, education, disability status, comorbidity, type of insurance, and the presence or absence of primary care providers. Quantitative results supported the qualitative results, revealing that participants with insurance, a primary care provider, or a disability or comorbid condition had a greater likelihood of having a patient portal account.
AHRQ-funded; HS026298.
Citation: Ahmed N, Brown J, Parau C .
Bridging the digital health divide: characterizing patient portal users and nonusers in the U.S.
Med Care 2023 Jul; 61(7):448-55. doi: 10.1097/mlr.0000000000001869..
Keywords: Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Health Information Technology (HIT), Health Literacy
Lane S, Fitzsimmons E, Zelefsky A
Assessing electronic health literacy at an urban academic hospital.
The purpose of this study was to explore electronic health literacy (EHL) in patients at an urban, academic hospital in the Bronx, and evaluate for relationships between EHL levels and different demographic variables. The researchers designed a cross-sectional, observational study in adults 18 years or more who presented for services at the Montefiore Einstein Center for Cancer Care (MECCC) Department of Radiation Oncology or the Montefiore Department of Medicine in the Bronx. The study evaluated EHL using the existing, validated eHealth Literacy Scale (eHEALS) survey and the researchers’ newly developed eHealth Literacy Objective Scale-Scenario Based (eHeLiOS-SB) tool. The study found that there was a statistically significant relationship between age and EHL as evaluated by both eHEALS and eHeLiOS-SB, with lower EHL scores for older adults. A specific question designed to evaluate attitudes toward digital health technologies revealed that the majority of participants held a positive attitude toward those types of applications.
AHRQ-funded; HS025645.
Citation: Lane S, Fitzsimmons E, Zelefsky A .
Assessing electronic health literacy at an urban academic hospital.
Appl Clin Inform 2023 Mar; 14(2):365-73. doi: 10.1055/a-2041-4500..
Keywords: Health Literacy, Electronic Health Records (EHRs), Telehealth, Health Information Technology (HIT)