From: hounddog23x@gmail.com   
      
   NOVEMBER 12, 2014   
      
   The great digital divide in healthcare: Older Americans may be left behind   
      
   Less than a third of elderly adults use Web for health information and   
   unlikely to use electronic health records; low health literacy widens gap   
   ANN ARBOR, Mich. --   When it comes to the benefits of electronic health   
   records, older Americans may be left behind, says a new University of Michigan   
   study.   
      
   EHR.jpg   
   Son teaching older dad to use tablet   
   Less than a third of Americans age 65 and over use the Web for health   
   information and barely 10 percent of those with low health literacy - or   
   ability to navigate the health care system - go online for health-related   
   matters, according to the nationally-   
   representative study that appears in the Journal of General Internal   
   Medicine.       
      
   "In recent years we have invested many resources in Web-based interventions to   
   help improve people's health, such as electronic health records designed to   
   help patients become more active participants in their care. But many older   
   Americans, especially    
   those with low health literacy, may not be prepared for these new tools," says   
   lead author Helen Levy, Ph.D., research associate professor at the U-M   
   Institute for Social Research.   
      
   "Our findings suggest that there's a digital divide when it comes to health   
   care. Older adults with low health literacy especially represent a vulnerable   
   population that's at high risk of being left behind by the advance of   
   technology."   
      
   Over the last five years, uptake of electronic health records in the U.S. has   
   increased dramatically as a result of government initiatives and investment by   
   healthcare providers. Many providers, including the U-M Health System, now   
   offer patients access    
   to parts of their own medical records via online health portals that include   
   everything from reminders of when they are due for wellness visits and   
   screening tests, to immunization records and lab results, as well as key   
   information on obtaining and    
   using their prescription medications correctly and safely.     
      
   "Health information technology promises significant benefits, but it also   
   comes with the risk that these benefits won't be shared equally," says senior   
   author Kenneth Langa, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of Internal Medicine at the U-M   
   Medical School and    
   research investigator at the Center for Clinical Management Research (CCMR),   
   VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System.   
      
   "The Internet is becoming central to health care delivery, but older Americans   
   with low health literacy face barriers that may sideline them in this era of   
   technology. Programs need to consider interventions that target health   
   literacy among older adults    
   to help narrow the gap and reduce the risk of deepening disparities in health   
   access and outcomes."   
      
   Also contributing to the study was Alexander T. Janke, B.S., of the School of   
   Medicine at Wayne State University.   
      
   Researchers analyzed data from the Health and Retirement Study, a long-running   
   data collection effort of the U-M Institute for Social Research whose primary   
   sponsor is the National Institute on Aging.   
      
   Other affiliations: Both Langa and Levy are members of the Institute for   
   Healthcare Policy and Innovation. Langa is also a member of the U-M Institute   
   for Social Research, Institute of Gerontology and School of Public Health.   
   Levy is also with the U-M    
   Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy and School of Public Health.   
      
   Disclosures: None   
      
   Funding: Levy receives financial support from the National Institute on Aging   
   (grant numbers NIA K01AG034232 and NIA P01AG026571). Langa acknowledges   
   financial support from the National Academies Keck Futures Initiative (grant   
   number NAKFI IB5). The    
   Health and Retirement Study is sponsored by the National Institute on Aging   
   (grant number NIA U01AG009740).   
      
   Reference: "Health Literacy and the Digital Divide among Older Americans,"   
   Journal of General Internal Medicine.          
      
   News   
      
   Could gut bacteria that help us digest beer & bread fight disease, too?   
      
      
   http://www.uofmhealth.org/news/archive/201411/great-digital-divi   
   e-healthcare-older-americans-may-be-left   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)