Information Systems and Healthcare XXXVII: When Your Employer Provides Your Personal Health Record—Exploring Employee Perceptions of an Employer-Sponsored PHR System

Abstract

A growing number of employers provide electronic personal health records (PHRs) as a service to employees as part of a health benefit program. However, a variety of unique issues related to attitudes and adoption arise when a PHR is hosted by the employer, and little research has addressed this relationship. This article reports the findings from an exploratory study of factors that influence employee perceptions, concerns, and expectations related to an employer—sponsored PHR service, with data from 132 employees of a large U.S. corporation. Attitudes toward PHR systems and employee perceptions and concerns identified in prior research are evaluated. Despite studies suggesting significant demand for PHR products across the general public, especially those that are offered at no cost to the user, responses indicated unique barriers to use, as well as opportunities, for employer-sponsored PHRs. The future role of employers as sponsors of PHRs is discussed in light of obstacles and strategies to improve system use, and the need to help employees realize the potential value of employer-sponsored PHRs.