A multicenter, randomized, open study to evaluate the impact of an electronic data capture system on the care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Joseph Huffstutter, W. David Craig, Gregory Schimizzi, John Harshbarger, Jeffrey Lisse, Shelley Kasle, Lisa Hymson, David Yocum, Lesley Castro, Ronald Hegedus, Peter Callegari, Newman Yeilding, Keith Gilmer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Scopus citations

Abstract

Objective: To examine the impact of an electronic data capture system on patient satisfaction and patient-physician interactions in a rheumatology clinical setting. Study design: In this multicenter study, 1079 patients with rheumatoid arthritis completed questionnaires quarterly about their health and satisfaction with care using a computer. At 6 months, 901 eligible patients were randomized 2:1 to receive or not to receive graphical summarized health information or Health Tracker (HT) reports. Data collected at each visit included patient satisfaction with care; patient-physician interaction assessments; a 56-joint self-assessment for patients; a 28-joint assessment for physicians; patient pain, fatigue, and global assessments (visual analogue scale, physician global assessment, Health Assessment Questionnaire, and Short Form-12) all of which were cumulatively recorded in the HT report. Results: Patient demographics at baseline were similar between groups. Changes from baseline to 1 year showed that patients in the HT-viewers group were significantly more satisfied with their care (p < 0.001) than those in the HT-nonviewers group (p = 0.131). Physicians reported improved interactions with patients at 1 year in both the HT-viewers (p < 0.001) and HT-nonviewers groups (p = 0.002); however, the improvement was significantly larger for the HT-viewers group than for the HT-nonviewers group (p < 0.001). Adverse events were comparable between groups. Conclusions: Patient access to systematically collected patient data reports promoted self-involvement and improved patient satisfaction and patient-physician interactions more in the HT-viewers than in HT-nonviewers groups at 1 year (p < 0.001). This was an open, observational study; no formal hypothesis testing was conducted. The HT system was not validated and some bias may have existed with respect to patient comfort level with a computer, user error, and timing of data entry of the physicians' assessments.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1967-1979
Number of pages13
JournalCurrent Medical Research and Opinion
Volume23
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2007

Keywords

  • Electronic data capture system
  • Health tracker
  • Patient satisfaction
  • Patient-physician interaction
  • Rheumatoid arthritis

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Medicine

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