Shifting Mindsets: The Impact of a Patient Portal on Functioning and Recovery in a Mental Health Setting.

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to understand whether higher use of a patient portal can have an impact on mental health functioning and recovery. METHOD: A mixed methods approach was used for this study. In 2019-2021, patients with mental health diagnoses at outpatient clinics in an academic centre were invited to complete World Health Organization Disability Assessment Scale 12 (WHODAS-12) and Mental Health Recovery Measure surveys at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months after signing up for the portal. At the 3-month time point, patients were invited to a semistructured interview with a member of the team to contextualize the findings obtained from the surveys. Analytics data was also collected from the platform to understand usage patterns on the portal. RESULTS: Overall, 113 participants were included in the analysis. There was no significant change in mental health functioning and recovery scores over the 6-month period. However, suboptimal usage was observed as 46% of participants did not complete any tasks within the portal. Thirty-five participants had low use of the portal (1-9 interactions) and 18 participants had high usage (10+ interactions). There were also no differences in mental health functioning and recovery scores between low and high users of the portal. Qualitative interviews highlighted many opportunities where the portal can support overall functioning and mental health recovery. CONCLUSIONS: Collectively, this study suggests that higher use of a portal had no impact, either positive or negative, on mental health outcomes. While it may offer convenience and improved patient satisfaction, adequate support is needed to fully enable these opportunities for patient care. As the type of interaction with the portal was not specifically addressed, future work should focus on looking at ways to support patient engagement and portal usage throughout their care journey.

Patient and Family Member Readiness, Needs, and Perceptions of a Mental Health Patient Portal: A Mixed Methods Study.

Patient portals are a form of technology that supports patients in accessing their health information, and other functions like scheduling appointments. The presence and utilization of patient portals in mental health contexts is relatively new. Despite research existing in the mental health literature that indicates that there may be benefits when patients have access to their mental health notes, there is limited information as to how best to implement portals, and support adoption among patients and their family members. Given this gap in literature, this study aimed to identify patient and family readiness, needs, and perceptions of a mental health patient portal. Surveys were administered to patients (n = 103) and family members (n = 7) either in-person or over the phone by a Peer Support Worker. The sample of participants consisted of patients and family members affiliated with Canada's largest mental health hospital located in Toronto, Ontario. Study results indicated that patients had the highest interest in the following portal functions: scheduling appointments, checking appointment times, and accessing their health record. Both patients and family members expressed their concerns about cybersecurity and potential privacy breaches. The results of this study, as well as the approach, can inform future patient portal planning and implementation activities at other healthcare organizations.

Three Methods for Engaging Patients and Care Partners in Patient Portal Research.

There has been a significant increase in the volume of research conducted on patient portals in recent years. Similarly, there has been a number of benefits described in the literature when patients are engaged in research at all stages. This poster will provide an overview of three ways that patients can be engaged in patient portal research. The methods are based on those used in mental health patient portal research in Canada.

Engaging patients and family members in the evaluation of a mental health patient portal: protocol for a mixed-methods study.

INTRODUCTION: Twenty per cent of Canadians will experience a mental illness in any year. Mental health patient portals have been developed to support these individuals in taking more control over their own mental health and care. This may be done through electronic access to their health records and other supportive functions like completion of online self-assessments. To date, there has been limited research into the value that these portals may provide within mental health contexts. This study will identify what value mental health patient portals may offer to patients and their family members. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: This study will use a mixed-methods design. Patients will complete a survey consisting of validated instruments at the time of enrolment in the portal, and at 3 and 6 months of portal use. Patient and family member focus groups will be conducted. Portal usage data will be collected to identify if there are differences in outcomes based on usage. The study will be done at Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, and will be conducted using a patient and family-oriented research approach, engaging these important representatives in all stages of the research process. The primary data analysis for the survey portion of the study will be done using linear mixed-effect models, assessing the differences between patients with different portal usage levels. A thematic analysis will be conducted of the focus group transcripts. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Approval from the study site's Research Ethics Board has been obtained. The dissemination of findings of this study will be done through presentations at conferences, as well as a formal peer-reviewed journal article. Additionally, the research team will work with a group of patients and family members to identify opportunities to complete knowledge translation and dissemination activities in non-traditional venues.

Thank you for asking: Exploring patient perceptions of barcode medication administration identification practices in inpatient mental health settings.

BACKGROUND: Barcode medication administration systems have been implemented in a number of healthcare settings in an effort to decrease medication errors. To use the technology, nurses are required to login to an electronic health record, scan a medication and a form of patient identification to ensure that these correspond correctly with the ordered medications prior to medication administration. In acute care settings, patient wristbands have been traditionally used as a form of identification; however, past research has suggested that this method of identification may not be preferred in inpatient mental health settings. If barcode medication administration technology is to be effectively used in this context, healthcare organizations need to understand patient preferences with regards to identification methods. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to elicit patient perceptions of barcode medication administration identification practices in inpatient mental health settings. Insights gathered can be used to determine patient-centered preferences of identifying patients using barcode medication administration technology. METHODS: Using a qualitative descriptive approach, fifty-two (n=52) inpatient interviews were completed by a Peer Support Worker using a semi-structured interview guide over a period of two months. Interviews were conducted in a number of inpatient mental health areas including forensic, youth, geriatric, acute, and rehabilitation services. An interprofessional team, inclusive of a Peer Support Worker, completed a thematic analysis of the interview data. RESULTS: Six themes emerged as a result of the inductive data analysis. These included: management of information, privacy and security, stigma, relationships, safety and comfort, and negative associations with the technology. Patients also indicated that they would like a choice in the type of identification method used during barcode medication administration. As well, suggestions were made for how barcode medication administration practices could be modified to become more patient-centered. CONCLUSION: The results of this study have a number of implications for healthcare organizations. As patients indicated that they would like a choice in the type of identification method used during barcode medication administration, healthcare organizations will need to determine how they can facilitate this process. Furthermore, many of the concerns that patients had with barcode medication administration technology could be addressed through patient education.