Promotion of meaningful use of a personal health record in second life

Patients today are demanding greater access to and control of their health information. Personal Health Records (PHRs) are paving the way for patients to update, maintain and share their comprehensive medical information. The opportunity to develop and maintain a PHR is equally as important for those individuals in the disabled community who face many unique challenges to access health information. The project, conducted as part of our graduate course, explored the use of Second Life to educate the disabled community on Virtual Ability Island (VAI) about the importance of PHRs. The project examined the tools needed to offer such a presentation for the disabled community and identified legal, ethical, social, or public challenges for PHR use. The project outcomes indicated a desire for knowledge and genuine concerns by the attendees regarding PHRs. The authors note that more research is needed to make this technology available to all.