89% of patients value their relationships with primary care physicians

Access to a primary care physician for patient care has been shown to be effective in improving patient outcomes. Also important to the patient, according to 89% of those polled in a recent survey, is the relationship the patient has with that primary care physician.

The survey, conducted by Health is Primary, a campaign from Family Medicine for America’s Health (FMAHealth), asked a national sample of about 22,800 registered voters about a number of aspects of their healthcare. Additional results from the survey include:

• 88% said it’s important to ensure coverage for preventive and wellness care to keep patients healthy
• 91% said it’s important that healthcare is affordable
• 85% said physicians should be paid based on the value of the care they provide and not on the number of procedures they perform
• 88% said it should be a priority of the country to ensure access to family and primary care physicians

A relationship with a primary care provider is important to patients. Fierce Healthcare reports, however, that a government survey conducted in early 2017 showed that there are still a number of Americans who do not have a primary care physician at all. In fact, the report states that “28% of men and 17% of women don’t have a personal doctor or healthcare provider.” Access to healthcare, particularly to a primary care provider, can make a difference in the quality of a patient’s coordinated care and overall health, particularly for chronically ill patients.

At Elation, we believe that the primary care physician can play a significant role in a patient’s healthcare outcomes. We also believe that a positive relationship with a primary care physician includes the ability to communicate directly with the physician. Patients quite often have important questions after their visit and need an advanced technology tool that enables them to get answers securely and seamlessly.

Elation Health’s philosophy has always been and will continue to be focused on strengthening the relationship between patients and physicians, and enabling phenomenal care for everyone.