Improving Diabetes Care Through Effective Personalized Patient Portal Interactions
Condition: Diabetes Mellitus
MeSH terms: Diabetes Mellitus
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Patient-facing eHealth technologies, such as online patient portals, connect patients with
      the healthcare system, help them access their health information, and support self-management
      of health conditions. This study tested an intervention to improve adoption and use of the My
      HealtheVet patient portal for diabetes management.
    

Detailed description: 
      The goal of this small scale study is to test the feasibility of engaging Veterans in a
      supported adoption intervention to promote effective patient portal use in a sample of
      Veterans with uncontrolled Type II diabetes.

      Participants were eligible for recruitment if they were Veterans age 18-85 who were actively
      receiving care at one of the study sites (as determined by having an upcoming scheduled
      appointment), had uncontrolled glucose (HbA1c >= 8.5%), and had either never used the VA
      patient portal or were inactive registrants who have not used the patient portal in the past
      12 months. Participants who met these conditions and did not opt out of the study were
      randomized to one of four arms: 1) Encouragement I (brochure + mailed training guide), 2)
      Encouragement II (brochure + mailed training guide + invitation to group training), 3)
      Encouragement III (brochure + mailed training guide + invitation to group and one-on-one
      training), and 4) Comparison (standard patient portal enrollment brochure only). All arms
      received the standard My HealtheVet patient portal enrollment brochure along with an
      invitation to participate in the study. Those randomized to any of the Encouragement Arms
      received a mailed training guide. The My HealtheVet Training Guide for Veterans Living with
      Diabetes was designed in conjunction with Veteran co-investigators based on feedback from
      patients living with diabetes who were My HealtheVet users. It provided step by step guidance
      on how to use the features Veterans living with diabetes find most helpful with specific
      examples of use for diabetes self-management. Those in Encouragement Arm II were also invited
      to attend one of several group training sessions. Those in Encouragement III were invited to
      schedule a one-on one session to learn how to use the patient portal. Those in the comparison
      condition were asked during their interview if they would like a Training Guide mailed to
      them at the end of the trial, and those interested were mailed a Training Guide.
    

Intervention name(s): My HealtheVet Brochure; My HealtheVet Training Guide for Veterans Living with Diabetes; My HealtheVet Group Training; My HealtheVet Individual Training
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral; Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): Participants will receive a mailed brochure with basic My HealtheVet content.; Participants will be mailed a bound My HealtheVet training guide with step by step instructions on how to register, upgrade to Premium account, refill prescriptions, use secure messaging, download their Blue Button reports, and other features; Participants will be invited to participate in a scheduled group training to learn how to use My HealtheVet to help manage their diabetes; Participants will be invited to participate in a one-on-one training to learn how to use My HealtheVet to help manage their diabetes at a time of their convenience.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Single (Participant)
Primary purpose: Health Services Research
Keywords: Diabetes Mellitus; Personal Health Records; Patient Outcome Assessment; Mental Health