A family practice has multiple opportunities to have a digital presence. From scheduling appointments via the Internet, to text message reminders for patients, to integrating useful apps into diagnosis, there are numerous ways for physicians to use electronic media. At this year’s KHM Congress in Lucerne, Martin Moser, Basel, and Michael F. Bagattini, MD, Zurich, presented some exciting concepts.
The web presence of many medical practices is in need of improvement, emphasized Martin Moser, Market Manager of PostFinance, at the beginning of his presentation. The findability of general practitioners via Internet search engines tends to increase. However, the links do not always lead to the websites of the practices, but sometimes to external address collection sites. The person being searched for cannot control the content of these pages, so his or her name may appear in unfavorable contexts. “To prevent this, I recommend that GP practices create their own web presence. Many think this takes too much time. Of course, the work can be handed over to an agency, but even if you use so-called web templates (design template for creating a homepage) to put together the content on your own, it hardly takes the layman longer than a rainy Sunday to get started. Regarding the costs, there are also false prejudices: A .ch address is available for as little as CHF 17/year!”, Moser emphasized.
Own website: What to consider?
Such a controllable presence is important because many patients find their future family doctors on the Internet. The following points should be taken into account when creating:
Usability: The website must be suitable for the target group, user-friendly and easy to learn. “Whenever possible, the principle is: hand over control to the user,” Moser said. “To get an impression of the usability of a website, it’s best to show it to a friend and let them try out the navigation directly.” Basically, images, clear hierarchies, little flowing text and a clear choice of words are recommended.
Accessibility: Accessibility means the structural design of the homepage in such a way that it can be used by people with disabilities in the same way as by people without disabilities. For example, an individually selectable font size, strong contrasts, or a cleanly structured code that allows a visually impaired person to have the text read aloud by an electronic voice make access easier. Moreover, technical jargon should be avoided.
Search engine optimization (SEO): “Optimally, when you enter your name into search engines, your practice’s location appears on a map on the right, and your website appears on the left, plus sublinks that lead directly to the relevant topic sections of your homepage,” says Moser (see box).
Communication with new media
The website can further be used to show the patient open appointment opportunities for an exam. If the platform is to be filled with content, service areas are conceivable where medical expertise can be passed on in a concise form, thus either counteracting misinformation that is circulating in abundance on the Internet or enabling an initial self-assessment. Such “screenings” (electronic questionnaires to check influenza risk or vaccination status, for example) free up consultation time. “You don’t have to fool yourself: It is not only the young patients who inform themselves about their potential diagnosis on the Internet before a consultation anyway, so initial indications on the part of the general practitioner are useful because, as a person of trust, he or she can refute possible horror scenarios,” says Moser. Photographs that are otherwise shown in brochures, such as the stages of development of an incipient melanoma, could be uploaded to the homepage by patients themselves for review. This will give you an initial assessment from the doctor before the visit. The goal here would not be online self-diagnosis, but avoiding misinformation. The subsequent interpersonal communication between doctor and patient is thus freed from misunderstandings.
Not only can patients be sent text messages with appointment reminders via their cell phones, apps can also be easily integrated into the practice. “Patients can, for example, measure their own blood pressure, keep a pain diary and much more. The future is mobile in any case,” Moser concluded.
Source: “Digital Media in Medical Practice,” workshop at the 15th Continuing Education Conference of the College of Family Medicine (KHM), June 20-21, 2013, Lucerne. Presentation on www.arzt-online.tk
HAUSARZT PRAXIS 2013; (11)10: 10
