Implementing After Visit Summaries for Low Socioeconomic Patients at a Free Clinic

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Identifier 2019_Rolfe
Title Implementing After Visit Summaries for Low Socioeconomic Patients at a Free Clinic
Creator Rolfe, Brandilyn
Subject Advanced Practice Nursing; Education, Nursing, Graduate; Ambulatory Care; Health Literacy; Socioeconomic Factors; Socioeconomic Disparities in Health; Health Disparate, Minority and Vulnerable Populations; Social Class; Office Visits; Patient Education as Topic; Self-Management; Treatment Adherence and Compliance; Appointments and Schedules; Meaningful Use; Electronic Health Records; Uncompensated Care; Vulnerable Populations; Patient Participation; Patient Acceptance of Health Care; Quality Improvement
Description Background: Patient recall and understanding of healthcare information received from a provider at an appointment is less than satisfactory. Factors that increase these barriers include, poor health literacy, low socioeconomic status, language barriers, complicated medical jargon and the sheer volume of information given. Having access to an After Visit Summary (AVS) can help to bridge the gap to better patient understanding by providing key information from the appointment that the patient can reference. Many larger healthcare systems provide access to an AVS through online portals that patients can register for and access at their own convenience. However, many free clinics do not have this capability due to software constraints. Even if they did, their patients may not have online access, or the ability to navigate or comprehend the information contained in the medical record. Purpose: To implement an easy to use AVS form and educate providers on the importance of both oral and written communication provided to the patient at the end of each appointment. This will better enhance and engage the patient in the understanding of their healthcare. Methods: This quality improvement project took place in a free primary care clinic in Salt Lake City, Utah. An AVS was developed and implemented in a pilot study for staff providers. A pre-test, educational module and post-test were administered to staff providers. A small qualitative sample was taken to gauge patient understanding and satisfaction with the AVS form. Results: The pre-test identified several deficits, including knowledge of patient recall statistics, with only 20% of providers acknowledging understanding. Post-test results showed 80% of providers understanding the recall statistics. The average pre-test score was 32.8 while the average post-test score increased to 37.8. Conclusion: Despite the small sample size of this pilot project, implementation and education were successful and well received by both providers and patients. The AVS forms are now in circulation throughout the clinic as a standard of care practice for use by all providers
Relation is Part of Graduate Nursing Project, Doctor of Nursing Practice, DNP
Publisher Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, University of Utah
Date 2019
Type Text
Rights Management © 2019 College of Nursing, University of Utah
Holding Institution Spencer S. Eccles Health Sciences Library, University of Utah
Collection Nursing Practice Project
Language eng
ARK ark:/87278/s65b4jxr
Setname ehsl_gradnu
ID 1427682
Reference URL https://collections.lib.utah.edu/ark:/87278/s65b4jxr
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