Empowering Patients Through Self-Service Technologies

By Maryam Saeri, Chief Operating Officer

At the heart of a truly patient-centric care model are patients who are actively engaged in the management of their own health. In our continued effort to greater empower patients in this regard, Yale Medicine launched an initiative last spring to expand the array of patient self-service offerings available through MyChart, our secure online portal. Adding to the existing functionalities of bill pay, test result viewing, and prescription refill requisitioning, patients can now access a variety of new features, with more to come (See an infographic).

• Electronic Check-In (eCheck-In) allows patients to complete much of the check-in process for their appointment on their phone, tablet or laptop. As a result, when they arrive for their appointment, the check-in process is much shorter and more streamlined. Since eCheck-in was launched practice-wide in March 2017, over 20,000 patients have used it to check in for more than 34,000 appointments.
• The “Track My Health” feature, which is being piloted in select departments this fall-winter, enables patients to record and track health metrics—such as blood pressure, blood sugar and weight—in an easy and uniform manner, while seamlessly importing this data into the patient’s electronic health record. Physicians determine which metrics will be tracked, with the option to directly or indirectly (i.e. via a delegate) receive alerts if any of the tracked values go outside of provider-established ranges.
• The electronic Patient Questionnaire allows patients to complete their medical history in advance of their appointment. In addition to streamlining the check-in process, this tool facilitates the capture of more thorough and accurate data, collected at the patient’s convenience. Pilots in select physician practices began in summer 2017, and will be expanded.
• The Interactive Wait List (“Fast Pass”) affords patients the opportunity to put their name on a waiting list and receive a notification through MyChart when an earlier appointment becomes available, resulting in improved access for patients and fewer unused appointment slots. Pilots in select physician practices will begin this fall.

For more information contact Maryam Saeri at (203) 737-3750 or maryam.saeri@yale.edu.