Although a majority of physicians in Hawaii regularly use IT in their clinical practice, few are aware of patients' out-of-pocket prescription drug costs, according to a study published in the American Journal of Managed Care, the Honolulu Advertiser reports.
For the study, Chien-Wen Tseng of the University of Hawaii-Mānoa's John A. Burns School of Medicine surveyed 247 Hawaiian primary care physicians in 2007 (Honolulu Advertiser, 4/1).
Study Results
The study found that about 80% of physicians surveyed regularly use IT in clinical care and that 62% of physicians regularly use two IT types. In addition, the study found that:
- 60% of physicians used the Internet;
- 54% of physicians used electronic prescribing tools;
- 43% used electronic health records; and
- 37% used PDAs.
Tseng said the researchers had "hoped that physicians who regularly use health information technology in clinical care would have a better knowledge of drug costs."
However, only 25% of physicians reported that they often know prescription drug costs, and the researchers did not find that IT use was associated with better knowledge of prescription drug costs.
Previous studies have found that about 26% of patients report non-adherence to prescription drugs because of costs.
According to the researchers, the findings should spur policymakers, health insurers and IT providers to re-evaluate whether current and future IT tools effectively provide cost information to physicians (Merrill, Healthcare IT News, 4/5).