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Personal Health Records Essay

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Introduction
Increased public demand to access health information and growth of consumerism in health care industry are two important reasons form increasing attention to Personal Health Records (PHRs) in the recent years. Surveys show that a considerable number of people want to have access to their health information. In one survey, 60 percent of respondents wanted physicians to provide online access to medical records and test results, and online appointment scheduling; 1 in 4 said they would pay more for the service.
Moreover, increasing costs of healthcare delivery and emerging trends toward patient empowerment and patient-centered care in order to achieve higher quality healthcare, needs patients to play a more active role in their …show more content…

For this reason, some experts think that the term “Personal Health Record” is not descriptive enough and can limit innovation and usage of these systems. Personal Health Record Systems (PHRS) and Personal Health Platforms (PHP) have been suggested as more appropriate terms.

Types of PHRs
From an architectural point of view, PHRs can be divided into four different types.
Stand-alone PHR: This is the simplest form of a PHR that does not connect with any other system. The data is usually entered manually by the patient. This type of PHR can be in the form of USB devices, CDs, smart cards, desktop applications, or even web-based applications that can be accessed through the internet. Although this model of PHR gives patient complete control over data and seems more secure as it has no connection to other systems, it lacks the reliability and usefulness and is not considered a preferred model. Stand-alone PHRs can only be considered computerized versions of paper-based health records the some people keep.
Provider-tethered PHRs: In this model, PHR is developed and maintained by a healthcare provider, insurer, or employer. The type of health information that is stored in these PHRs is affected by the nature of the provider business. For instance, in PHRs that are offered by insurers, the content is mostly administrative and billing in nature. In the case of healthcare providers, PHR would be a customized view of

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