Completion Rate and Satisfaction With Online Computer-Assisted History Taking Questionnaires in Orthopedics:...

Area of Science:

• Medical Informatics
• Health Services Research
• Orthopedic Surgery

Background:

• Collecting medical history is crucial for diagnosis but time-consuming in healthcare.
• Computer-assisted history taking (CAHT) systems allow electronic pre-visit medical history sharing.
• Low adoption of CAHT in practice is attributed to various barriers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To implement a CAHT questionnaire for orthopedic patients before their first outpatient consultation.
• To analyze the completion rate and assess the added value of the CAHT system.

Main Methods:

• A multicenter implementation study invited orthopedic patients to complete a CAHT questionnaire.
• Primary outcome: questionnaire completion rate.
• Secondary outcomes: patient and physician satisfaction assessed via surveys and interviews.

Main Results:

• A high completion rate of 92.7% (4932/5321) was achieved.
• Patients reported high ease of completion (8.0/10) and satisfaction (8.0/10).
• Physician-rated added value was 7.8/10, citing increased efficiency and completeness.

Conclusions:

• Previously identified barriers to CAHT implementation are effectively overcome.
• High patient completion rates lead to improved consultation efficiency and personalization.
• CAHT systems are recommended for routine implementation in time-constrained medical environments.