Digital technologies in primary care: Implications for patient care and future research

Abstract

Digital health is the convergence of digital technologies with health, healthcare, living, and society. Contrasting with the slow trend during the last decades, in the last few years, we have observed an expansion and widespread adoption and implementation. In this paper, we revisit the potential that digital health presents for the delivery of higher quality, safer and more equitable care. Focussing on three examples – patient access to health records, big data analytics, and virtual care – we discuss the emerging opportunities and challenges of digital health, and how they can change primary care. We also reflect on the implications for research to evaluate digital interventions: the need to evaluate clear outcomes in light of the six dimensions of quality of care (patient-centredness, efficiency, effectiveness, safety, timeliness, and equity); to define clear populations to understand what works and for which patients; and to involve different stakeholders in the formulation and evaluation of the research questions. Finally, we share five wishes for the future of digital care in General Practice: the involvement of primary healthcare professionals and patients in the design and maintenance of digital solutions; improving infrastructure, support, and training; development of clear regulations and best practice standards; ensuring patient safety and privacy; and working towards more equitable digital solutions, that leave no one behind.

Keywords:

• Telemedicine
• primary care
• quality of care
• research methodology

Disclosure statement

Ana Luísa Neves is a General Practitioner and Advanced Research Fellow at the Imperial NIHR Patient Safety Translational Research Centre, Imperial College London. Ana holds an appointment as Associate Professor at the Centre for Health Technology and Services Research/Department of Community Medicine, Health Information and Decision, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal. Her research interests include digital health, patient safety, health services research, and health policy.

Jako Burgers is practising general practitioner in the Netherlands and holds an academic chair ‘Promoting Personalised Care in Clinical Practice Guidelines’ at the Department of General Practice and Care and Public Health Research Institute of Maastricht University, supported by the Dutch College of General Practitioners (NHG). His research interests include innovation in methods of guideline development and implementation, quality of health care, and healthcare system performance focussing on primary care.