Your Patient Portal

Jon Belsher

What Is It? How Is It Used?

Remember the days when yourdoctor walked into the exam room

with a large file filled withpaperwork? Those days are longgone. Now your doctor comes inwith a laptop. They’ve transitioned

into digital healthcare byimplementing the patient portal.

What is the patient portal?

According to healthit.gov, a patient portal is a secure

online website that gives patients convenient 24-hour

access to personal health information from anywhere

with an internet connection. Doctors can upload

discharge summaries, prescribed medications,

immunizations, allergies and lab results to the patient

portal. With a secure username and password,

patients can view this information at any time and

from anywhere.

Patients can also:

Send messages to their health care provider

between visits

Request prescription refills

Schedule non-urgent appointments

Download, complete and sign forms

Check benefits and coverage

Update contact information

Make payments

How does the patientportal work?

Instead of the patient trying to call someone at the

doctor’s office (while possibly playing “phone tag”),

staff can quickly respond to emails and requests from

patients. Not only is this more efficient from a

business standpoint, but all inquiries are in writing so

messages will not be subject to misinterpretation or

miscommunication.

How does the patientportal work?

Although the portal can be accessed by the patient

and physician from anywhere at any time, that

doesn’t mean your doctor will respond to your

message during non-office hours. If you need non-

emergency medical care and your doctor’s office is

not open, you can go to a walk-in clinic such as a

Medspring Urgent Care. For true emergency

situations, make sure you go to the ER.

How do I get started withthe patient portal?

If your doctor has handouts about how to access the

portal, make sure you read them while you’re waiting

for your appointment. While you’re there, you can

also ask the staff questions about how to create an

account as well as how to use the account. If you’re

hands-on, you can create a portal account at your

next visit.

How do I get started withthe patient portal?

You can ask a staff member to help you setup your

account. You want to make sure you print out the

login information along with instructions on how to

use the portal. After your visit, you can log in on your

home computer to view the discharge summary.

Your enhanced healthcareexperience

with patient portal will improve your patient-provider

communication, provide additional supportive care

and will make you feel empowered that you have

more control over your healthcare.

Thank you.

JonBelsher.com