Consumers embrace online health care tools, Physicians slow to take up

A recent commissioned study conducted by Cisco Systems for Illuminas has shown that one in three US residents say that the Internet has changed the way they manage their health care.

Some of the great statistics that have come out of the study include:

• 62% of respondents said they have used online health tools.


• 56% of respondents report that personal technology has improved their health management.


• 25% say they are healthier because of the Internet.

The bad news is that physicians are slow to take up online technology. 62% of respondents said that their physician does not offer online tools including the ability to email their doctor. This is something I recently posted about, you can read it hear.

Study results are based on a survey conducted between January 29 and February 14 of 4,105 adults.

A similar survey by Accenture showed that the majority of respondents said that the availability of electronic health records influences their physician selection and that they would be willing to pay for the service.

I'm a little surprised that physicians are looking more seriously at internet online tools as part of their business model.

tags technorati : ehealth, electronic health records, health management, online health tools