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Using the internet to provide information prescriptions.

Lee M Ritterband¹, Stephen Borowitz, Daniel J Cox

¹Department of Psychiatric Medicine, University of Virginia Health System, PO Box 800223, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA. LEER@virginia.edu

|November 3, 2005

Summary

E-mail reminders significantly increased patient compliance with physician-prescribed health information websites (WebIPs). Most families forgot or lacked time to visit the sites, not technical issues.

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Area of Science:

Digital Health
Patient Education
Health Informatics

Background:

Information prescriptions direct patients to specific online resources for health management.
Patient compliance with Web-based information prescriptions (WebIPs) is crucial for effectiveness.
Barriers to accessing prescribed health information online can hinder patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

Quantify family adherence to physician-prescribed health websites.
Evaluate the impact of e-mail reminders on WebIP access rates.
Identify barriers families face when accessing prescribed online health information.

Main Methods:

Study included pediatric gastroenterology patients with chronic constipation/encopresis and internet access.
Physicians prescribed specific educational websites, providing families with access details.

Related Experiment Videos

Families received e-mail reminders 2 days post-visit; barriers were assessed 1 week later.

Main Results:

65% of families visited the prescribed website within one week.
E-mail reminders increased website visits from 53% to 77%.
Common barriers were forgetting and lack of time, not technical difficulties.

Conclusions:

Approximately two-thirds of families accessed prescribed WebIPs.
E-mail prompts demonstrated a 45% increase in compliance with WebIPs.
Addressing barriers like forgetfulness and time constraints is key to improving digital health intervention adherence.