Consumer informatics in primary care.

Abstract

The need to promote consumer informatics in all health care settings is essential. Primary care provides timely opportunities to educate and promote the use of e-health tools and computer literacy for consumers. However, these settings are often the least equipped with technology and informed care providers to educate and promote consumer acceptance and use of technology to promote and maintain health. The purpose of the consumer informatics in primary care project was twofold: 1) to develop a primary health care informatics practice model to improve health care outcomes to targeted communities and 2) promote the use of e-health tools for an identified consumer population. The paper describes a process of faculty and student dyads that combined primary care and informatics expertise to promote consumer informatics in an urban underserved primary care site.