Patient perspectives on electronic health record accessibility and patient participation: a questionnaire survey

ABSTRACT Objectives To explore patient perceptions on personal comfort with participation in their own care process and on support of this patient participation through electronic health record (EHR) accessibility.Methods Explorative quantitative questionnaire study in ambulatory patients visiting the departments of General Internal Medicine or Head, Neck and Maxillo-Facial Surgery of a Belgian tertiary referral center.Results Patients were recruited by convenience sampling of 438 out of the total of 1270 patients visiting either one of these departments within a time period of two weeks. Overall response rate was 97.3% (n = 426; 45.3% male; mean age 42.5 ± 15.4 years). Most patients (89.7%) indicated a desire to make healthcare decisions in partnership with their physician. They were in need of transparent and comprehensible health information. The EHR was perceived as a suitable and effective means to inform patients about their health and to increase involvement in care and treatment (77.6%). Furthermo...