Patient portals are now common in many healthcare places in the U.S. They let patients securely see their health records, talk to their care teams, make appointments, get test results, ask for prescription refills, and read educational material. Data from the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) shows that the number of people offered patient portals more than doubled from 2014 to 2022. By 2022, about 75% of people were offered this service by their doctors or insurance companies. This shows that digital access for patients has grown a lot across the country.
Adding artificial intelligence (AI) to these portals makes them do more than just show records. AI can answer everyday patient questions, help schedule appointments, and send urgent messages in the right way. This lowers the work for staff at the front desks and clinics. For example, athenahealth’s athenaOne patient platform has AI features that help staff work better while following HIPAA rules. These AI features answer common patient questions quickly and tell patients automatically when appointment slots open up. This makes booking appointments easier.
Digital health tools that focus on patient engagement work well when they are easy to use and personalized. Studies show that patients want to feel in control of their care and manage it themselves. But some things can get in the way, like low digital skills, low health knowledge, and worries about privacy. These have to be fixed for the tools to work well.
Patient portals that link with electronic health records (EHR) help patients and doctors talk better. They allow asynchronous communication, which means patients can send messages without needing an immediate reply from staff. This lowers the work load on office staff and still keeps a way for quick care. These tools also help patients take part more in their appointments and follow-up care.
Portals with educational content made just for a patient’s health or care plan help patients take more charge of their health. Giving trusted and checked information through the same system as the clinical data helps patients understand their conditions and choices better. According to the American Medical Association and some medical leaders, this leads to patients following their treatment plans better and feeling more satisfied.
Healthcare groups using AI help both patients and healthcare workers. For example, UpToDate Enterprise Edition has AI tools inside EHRs and portals like Epic and MyChart. These tools give doctors quick and reliable advice based on expert sources. This helps doctors improve patient care.
AI analytics also give doctors and leaders clear data about how tools are used, what knowledge is missing, and educational needs of staff. Dr. Scott Smitherman, CMIO of Providence Clinical Network, says this data shows which medical issues and meds are checked most often by doctors. This helps make focused education programs. Dr. Ann Cappellari from SSM Health also says CME tracking through these portals helps track how much doctors are involved and guides future education.
Healthcare systems also save time by lowering administrative work. Features like single sign-on (SSO) let doctors use many tools without logging in each time, which saves time and stops interruptions. AI tools help doctors find answers faster and avoid searching too much, so they can focus more on patient care.
Even though digital tools have strong potential, their success depends on how patients accept and use them. Research shows what helps or stops patients from using digital health tools. Feeling in control, managing care themselves, and having tools made just for them motivate patients. On the other hand, low digital or health skills and privacy worries often slow down wider use.
To fix these problems, healthcare providers and tech companies involve patients in making the tools. This helps make the tools easier to use and better matched to patient needs. Samaneh Madanian, a health informatics researcher, says patients use tools more when they feel the tools fit their preferences and health. Being clear about privacy is also key to build trust, especially as digital health data is more available.
Managing things like appointments and prescription refills is a big part of patient engagement. AI-powered self-service in portals helps these tasks a lot. Patients can book, change, or cancel appointments without calling. This lowers phone calls and frees staff to do other work.
Using AI to manage waitlists is a new idea with big benefits. AI finds open appointment slots and tells patients on waitlists by text or email. This makes scheduling easier, lowers no-show rates, and keeps schedules full without staff doing it manually.
Prescription management through portals also becomes more accurate and easy. Patients ask for refills online, and doctors check medication lists and send e-prescriptions safely through the portal. This digital way cuts errors from paper prescriptions and helps patients follow medication rules better.
One important change in healthcare tech is AI-powered workflow automation. This helps run routine, repeating tasks smoothly so staff can focus on harder or patient-facing work.
For example, front-office phone answering can be automated by companies like Simbo AI. These AI systems answer calls, handle appointment requests, and answer common questions without needing people all the time. Automating these lowers wait times, cuts dropped calls, and makes the patient’s experience better without needing more staff.
Also, AI in EHRs can sort incoming patient messages by priority. This helps clinical teams respond faster to important problems and delay less urgent ones properly.
Similar automation helps with lab results, clinical reminders, and referrals. UpToDate’s Enterprise Edition also uses AI analytics to find knowledge gaps or different practices at sites. This data lets teams target education and improve workflows, raising care quality and consistency.
Automation like Single Sign-On (SSO) makes it easier for providers to use many digital tools in one system. This cuts IT work and lets doctors switch between care areas and tools with less trouble.
Healthcare providers in the U.S. have more pressure to deliver value-based care—services that focus on quality, results, and patient satisfaction while managing costs. AI-driven self-service tools in portals and EHRs are made to help meet these needs.
Research shows that patients who use portals actively are more likely to finish referrals and follow up on tests. A report by the American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) shows that patients who see provider notes on portals complete referrals up to 40% more than those who don’t use the portals. This shows how portal use can help make care safer and better.
Also, pediatric offices using these tools saw a 78% rise in telehealth visits soon after starting. Monthly check-ins went up by 27%, showing better scheduling and patient keeping. These numbers show AI-powered portals help both patient engagement and smooth operations that matter for keeping practices going and patients getting care.
Implementation and Integration: The technology should fit well with current EHR systems. Examples like Epic and UpToDate Enterprise Edition have APIs and Single Sign-On features that make it easier and faster to start using.
Compliance and Security: All AI systems must follow HIPAA and other rules. Being open about how data is used and how AI works is important to keep patient trust and follow laws.
Patient Education and Support: When portals and AI tools are introduced, patients need clear instructions on how to use them. Setting rules on what kind of messages are okay and when to expect replies helps avoid problems or unhappy users.
Staff Training: Office and clinical staff should learn about AI workflows. Well-trained teams can help patients better, fix problems, and find ways to improve processes.
Monitoring and Analytics: Leaders should use AI analytics to watch how patients and doctors use portals and what education is needed. This data helps improve digital strategies and education programs continuously.
Addressing Digital Literacy: Providing support through phone help, tutorials, or in-person help assists patients with different experience levels to use new tools well.
AI-driven self-service tools built into EHRs and patient portals bring an important change in healthcare in the U.S. By making it easier for patients to access their health info, manage appointments and prescriptions, and helping doctors with AI data, these tools improve patient engagement and how well healthcare works.
Medical practice administrators, owners, and IT managers can use these tools to reduce front desk work, improve communication between patients and providers, and support better health results. Fixing barriers like digital skills and privacy concerns and giving clear education and workflow changes helps these digital health efforts succeed.
New AI uses, such as phone automation, message sorting, and personalized education, will keep helping U.S. healthcare providers meet growing needs for effective, patient-centered care. Adding trusted AI tools carefully into daily work remains key for the future of healthcare management and patient use.
UpToDate Enterprise Edition offers AI-enhanced search tools, self-service analytics, and integrated patient education resources directly accessible within EHRs and patient portals, enabling patients and care teams to access trusted, expert clinical information and personalized recommendations, which supports informed decision-making and encourages patient engagement in their care.
AI enables enhanced, responsible generative clinical support by providing fast, accurate, and succinct answers grounded in expert content, which assists clinicians in making confident decisions and allows care teams to access advanced workflows and data-driven insights for improved patient outcomes.
Self-service analytics provide instant insights into usage trends, educational gaps, and community health patterns, enabling clinical leaders and educators to tailor learning and care strategies, streamline workflows, and foster continuous improvement, ultimately benefiting patients through more informed and data-driven clinical decisions.
Seamlessly embedding UpToDate patient education content within Epic EHR and MyChart portals creates a unified experience for patients, ensuring they receive high-quality, evidence-based information directly related to their care, which promotes understanding, self-management, and active participation in treatment plans.
UpToDate partners closely with healthcare organizations to responsibly develop AI tools, basing them on expertly curated content and emphasizing safety, transparency, and validation to ensure AI outputs are accurate, reliable, and support clinical workflows without compromising patient care quality.
Healthcare systems leverage AI-driven analytics to identify gaps, optimize resource allocation, monitor clinical tool usage, and support strategic planning, thereby improving operational efficiency, reducing variability in care, and enhancing overall patient care quality and provider satisfaction.
Features like Single Sign-On (SSO) streamline clinician access to tools and patient education resources, minimizing login challenges and workflow interruptions, while integrated AI tools and analytics reduce time spent searching for information and allow focus on direct patient care.
Real-time data and CME tracking allow healthcare leaders to monitor clinician learning activities, identify knowledge gaps promptly, tailor education programs effectively, and demonstrate value and compliance, all of which contribute to improved clinical performance and patient outcomes.
Analytics help identify behavioral patterns and critical information gaps unique to specific sites and teams, enabling targeted education that addresses precise needs, driving timely improvements in clinical knowledge and practices, which enhances patient care in those environments.
AI builds upon existing trusted clinical resources by enhancing decision support with transparency and partnership, ensuring a sustainable and responsible integration into health systems that augments rather than replaces clinician expertise, fostering gradual adoption and better patient care outcomes.
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