What Low Income Patient’s Want From Their Experience With Providers!

I seem to be sharing a lot of stats lately, but stats are good!  Today’s come from HealthyCal, who have released a report on findings from a poll of low income patients that was funded by the Blue Shield Foundation of California.

I seem to be sharing a lot of stats lately, but stats are good!  Today’s come from HealthyCal, who have released a report on findings from a poll of low income patients that was funded by the Blue Shield Foundation of California.  Results include:

• 80% of respondents said it is important to have someone at a health care facility who “knows you pretty well,” but only 38% of respondents reported having such a connection
• 50% of respondents who receive health care services at a private physician’s office reported having a personal connection with their doctor
• 38% of respondents who receive health care services at a community clinic reported having a personal connection with their doctor
• 36% of respondents who use Kaiser Permanente reported having a personal connection with their doctor (this seems rather interesting)
• 81% of respondents said they would be willing to try a team-based approach to treatment, which incorporates physicians, nurses, medical assistants, dietitians and health outreach workers
• 94% of respondents who already receive team-based health care services said they are satisfied with their treatment 
• About 16% of respondents said they have a so-called health care “navigator” to help guide them through the medical system
• 91% of respondents who have a navigator said they are satisfied with the service
• About 60% of respondents said they would be willing to substitute a phone conversation for a personal visit to a health care provider to discuss routine health matters
• About 60% of respondents said they would be willing to use email and the Internet to schedule appointments, review their health records and renew prescriptions, but only 5% of respondents said they are doing so currently

What was really interesting, is that only 9% reported not having email.  When talking about technology, I often hear concerns about low income patients not having access to computers.  However, their access to mobile devices is exploding!  And, some have email addresses and access their accounts from a friend/family computer, library or other place of support.