Have Consumers Caught Up To Industry PHR Buzz?

Employers and health plans want consumers to adopt online personal health records (PHRs) in hopes of containing health costs through better healthcare choices. Unfortunately, consumers have yet to show much interest. A little less than one-third of consumers currently track any personal health information, and most records are too anemic to provide much value. A closer look at consumers who do store personal health information shows that they are not all alike but instead follow distinct and disparate goals — and select their PHR format accordingly. To drive more engagement with consumers and their personal health, PHR customer experience professionals must delve deeper into consumers' needs and preferences and then construct a PHR value proposition they can't refuse.