Using a Patient Portal to Screen Patients for Symptoms After Starting New Medications

Area of Science:

• Pharmacovigilance
• Digital Health
• Patient Safety

Background:

• Traditional pharmacovigilance relies on passive reporting, potentially underestimating adverse drug reactions (ADRs).
• Electronic health records and patient portals offer opportunities for proactive patient monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and test the feasibility of a proactive pharmacovigilance system using an electronic patient portal.
• To measure patient response rates and characterize reported symptoms and problems.
• To provide support for patients experiencing potential drug-related issues.

Main Methods:

• An automated system generated daily reports of new prescriptions.
• Patients were invited via portal to report new symptoms potentially related to new medications.
• Reported symptoms were classified using MedDRA, and patients received follow-up support.

Main Results:

• 29.4% of patients responded to the portal invitations.
• Potential ADRs were reported by 25.9% of patients initiating new medications.
• Gastrointestinal disorders were the most frequently reported ADRs (30%).

Conclusions:

• Systematic, portal-based surveillance for potential ADRs is feasible and effective.
• This method achieved higher response rates compared to automated phone calls.
• The system identified potential ADRs in approximately 25% of patients, consistent with existing literature.