Content area
Full Text
Headnote
MRCGP EXAM UPDATE
Headnote
Key points
* Email consultations may be suitable for handling minor problems.
* They may not necessarily increase GP workload.
* Confidentiality is still a problem.
Current situation
* Patients increasingly want to be able to communicate with healthcare professionals by email for various reasons.
* Email consultations could potentially play an important role in the delivery of preventive healthcare.
They could also facilitate self-management of chronic diseases.
* Use of email between patients and physicians is restricted by concerns on both sides over medicolegal issues, reimbursement, and time-management.
What is the evidence?
* There is very little evidence from controlled clinical trials to...