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Some health systems have implemented systems (called “e-visits”) in which a patient with a minor clinical condition can log into an electronic patient portal, fill out a symptom questionnaire, and receive advice from a clinician within several hours. Researchers used the digital patient care records of a large integrated California healthcare system to assess the characteristics of 21,000 e-visits (mean patient age, 36) during 6 months in 2019. Five common conditions were included: upper respiratory infection (URI), emergency contraception, conjunctivitis, pharyngitis, and urinary tract infection (UTI).
Medications were prescribed in 62% of e-visits, including cough suppressants in 72% of URI visits and antibiotics in 19% of pharyngitis visi…