PROMs are tools or questionnaires that collect patients’ views about their health, symptoms, and how well treatments work. Unlike regular medical tests, PROMs show how patients actually feel and function. They are especially useful for adults with long-term or complex health problems, like those recovering from joint surgery.
Groups like the National Academy of Medicine suggest using PROMs to get patients more involved and to make care more personal. Healthcare systems in the U.S., such as those in the High Value Healthcare Collaborative (HVHC), see PROMs as a way to meet rules and improve care value.
PROM data allows doctors and patients to make decisions together by giving more information than just lab tests. But collecting and using PROMs regularly still has many challenges that slow down their use.
Medical offices have busy and complex routines. Adding PROM collection can make more work for staff. This can cause doctors and office workers to resist using PROMs. Without clear steps that fit easily into daily work, staff may think PROMs are extra tasks with no quick benefit. Training and changing how the office works are often needed for staff to understand why PROMs are important and to support using them.
Many healthcare providers still use paper PROMs, which can lead to mistakes and take longer. Patients fill out forms during visits. Then staff must score and enter the data by hand into Electronic Health Records (EHRs). This wastes time, can cause errors, and slows down decisions during visits.
These problems make PROMs less helpful and stop many practices from using them because staff have more work.
Doctor visits are often short, which leaves little time for patients to complete PROMs. Long and hard questionnaires can stop patients from finishing or cause incomplete answers. This lowers the quality and usefulness of PROMs for making treatment choices.
As more providers use electronic PROMs (ePROMs), some patients have trouble accessing them. People with less money, older adults, and those not used to technology may find ePROMs hard. Limited access to devices and distrust in healthcare can reduce how much some patients take part.
This gap can make differences in healthcare worse because important patient feedback might be missing from some groups.
Doctors often find it hard to understand PROM scores because there are no agreed rules for how to use them. Without clear guidelines, doctors may use PROM data differently or ignore patient input.
Many EHR systems have trouble smoothly including PROM data. Paper forms or systems that don’t work well together make it hard to get PROM info during visits. When data isn’t easily shared, PROMs don’t help patient care as much.
To fix workflow problems, offices should change how they work to make PROM collection a usual part of visits. This means setting aside time for PROMs, training staff to help with them, and making sure data collection is tracked.
Some ideas are to send PROMs to patients before visits or give tablets in waiting rooms. These steps help balance time limits and let patients finish PROMs without stopping care.
Switching from paper to digital PROMs has clear benefits. ePROMs cut down errors from manual handling, let patients fill them out at home, send automatic reminders, and make data ready faster.
Health organizations that build easy-to-use digital systems can get more patients involved. Electronic systems can also use computerized adaptive testing (CAT), which shortens surveys by picking only important questions. This saves patients’ time and keeps data good.
Making PROM platforms easy to use is very important. Practices should use simple language, support different languages, and offer other ways to complete PROMs if needed.
Some new digital tools offer language translation and voice controls to help with language and reading difficulties. Also, letting patients use phones or get help at the clinic can improve participation from underserved groups.
Getting staff involved matters. Teaching doctors and workers about why PROMs help care makes them see their value.
Training can also show how to read PROM data and include results in care plans. Changing the office culture is needed so staff see patient feedback as important, not extra paperwork.
Picking PROMs that match clinical needs makes data more useful. Doctors, managers, and patients should work together to choose surveys that measure what matters most.
To use PROM data well, it must fit smoothly into EHR systems. Using standards like HL7 FHIR helps connect systems and provide real-time access to PROM data.
Protecting patient privacy is very important. Digital PROM systems must follow rules like HIPAA. Clear policies, encryption, and safe storage keep patient information secure and trusted.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and workflow automation can help improve PROM collection and use in U.S. clinics. For example, Simbo AI offers AI-driven phone systems that help patient communication and support PROM tasks.
AI can send automatic reminders to patients to complete PROMs on schedule. This lowers the need for staff to follow up by hand and helps more patients respond.
Language barriers often stop some patients from joining, especially those who don’t speak English well. AI call helpers can talk in many languages and translate answers for staff. This improves communication and gets more accurate data from diverse patients.
AI can pull needed information from patient inputs, like insurance or pictures sent by text, and fill EHR fields automatically. This cuts down on clerical work and errors, giving staff more time for patients.
AI can also look at PROM results, spot trends, and give doctors useful advice during visits. This helps doctors make better decisions by showing risks or needs that are not obvious otherwise.
By automating routine PROM tasks and data handling, AI makes clinical work smoother. Staff spend less time on paperwork and more on patient care. It also keeps PROM data good and available when needed.
In the U.S., healthcare faces special challenges because patients are very diverse and rules are complex. Practice leaders and IT managers must think about:
By working on these points, U.S. health organizations can improve how they use PROMs and offer better patient-focused care.
Using Patient-Reported Outcome Measures in clinical practice can help improve patient care and healthcare value in the United States. Though there are challenges like workflow changes, technology limits, and patient participation issues, smart approaches and new technology can help solve these problems.
Digital PROMs, combined with staff training and changes in office culture, create a system that collects patient feedback more easily and accurately. AI and automation support this by automating messages, improving data quality, and helping doctors make decisions.
Companies like Simbo AI show how AI tools can be used in healthcare offices to make PROM workflows and communication smoother, helping both patients and staff. For clinic leaders and IT managers, investing in these ways will be important to use PROMs well and improve patient-centered care.
PROMs are tools used to collect patient perspectives on their health status, quality of life, and treatment outcomes, providing actionable data for clinicians.
PROMs are associated with enhanced clinical outcomes by facilitating patient engagement, improving functionality, and quality of life, thereby informing health systems on effective care processes.
Primarily adult patients with complex chronic conditions, such as those undergoing specific interventions like joint replacement surgery.
Incorporating PROMs requires implementation strategies that embed these measures into routine clinical encounters effectively.
Collecting PROMs helps health systems meet regulatory mandates, improve resource utilization, and identify the relative value of different care measures.
Organizations often lack clear guidelines on the effective integration and selection of PROMs into clinical practice.
Evidence reports provide vital data that health systems can use to advocate for PROM integration, supporting regulatory compliance and improved patient outcomes.
The HVHC is a provider network that focuses on improving healthcare value through data-driven innovations and can help disseminate evidence regarding PROMs.
Findings will be shared within organizations and relevant networks, such as the HVHC and Health Care Systems Research Network, to inform decision-making.
PROMs measure health-related benefits such as symptom improvement, quality of life, patient functionality, and healthcare service utilization.
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