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Electronic Health Records

August 7, 2007

More Americans are Searching For – and Finding – Health Care Information Online

Dramatically more Americans are searching online for health-related information now than they did just two years ago, according to a Harris Interactive survey.

The survey, conducted last month, showed that 84 percent of online adults in the United States conducted online searches for health information, compared to just 72 percent who did the same in 2005. Of those who searched online for health-related information, 88 percent said they found the information they needed. Further, 86 percent of the survey's respondents said that online health information was reliable.

That's all good news for members of Kaiser Permanente. More than 8.5 million of Kaiser Permanente's members have access to portions of their KP HealthConnect™ electronic health record, helping them manage their care online at kp.org.

KP HealthConnect™ links people securely to their health care teams, their personal health information, and the latest medical knowledge - taking advantage of Kaiser Permanente's integrated approach to health care. With access on kp.org, KP HealthConnect™ is helping members and their caregivers communicate with greater ease and convenience.

KP HealthConnect™ is the world's largest civilian electronic health record project.

  • Nearly 3 million messages have been sent to Kaiser Permanente doctors' offices through the "E-mail your doctor" function. More than 407,000 unique members have used the "E-mail your doctor" function in 2007 alone.
  • More than 6 million Kaiser Permanente members are routinely treated with an electronic chart in an outpatient setting today
  • Kaiser Permanente has measured 1.1 million unique visitors to KP HealthConnect™ online since the tool was launched.

The Harris Interactive survey results are based on a telephone survey of 1,010 U.S. adults conducted July 10-16.

For more about the Harris Interactive survey regarding online searches for health-related information, visit iHealthBeat.org, a service of the California Health Care Foundation. For more information about KP HealthConnect™, visit the KP HealthConnect™ section of the KP News Center.