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LaVela SL, Schectman G, Gering J, Locatelli SM, Gawron A, Weaver FM. Understanding health care communication preferences of veteran primary care users. Patient education and counseling. 2012 Sep 1; 88(3):420-6.
Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects. OBJECTIVE: To assess veterans'' health communication preferences (in-person, telephone, or electronic) for primary care needs and the impact of computer use on preferences. METHODS: Structured patient interviews (n = 448). Bivariate analyses examined preferences for primary care by ''infrequent'' vs. ''regular'' computer users. RESULTS: Only 54% were regular computer users, nearly all of whom had ever used the internet. ''Telephone'' was preferred for 6 of 10 reasons (general medical questions, medication questions and refills, preventive care reminders, scheduling, and test results); although telephone was preferred by markedly fewer regular computer users. ''In-person'' was preferred for new/ongoing conditions/symptoms, treatment instructions, and next care steps; these preferences were unaffected by computer use frequency. Among regular computer users, 1/3 preferred ''electronic'' for preventive reminders (37%), test results (34%), and refills (32%). CONCLUSION: For most primary care needs, telephone communication was preferred, although by a greater proportion of infrequent vs. regular computer users. In-person communication was preferred for reasons that may require an exam or visual instructions. About 1/3 of regular computer users prefer electronic communication for routine needs, e.g., preventive reminders, test results, and refills. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: These findings can be used to plan patient-centered care that is aligned with veterans'' preferred health communication methods.
