Only 16 per cent of patients have access to electronic medical records - report

Accenture survey suggests practices have a long way to go to meet 2015 deadline

Only 16 per cent of patients currently have access to their electronic records in the UK, a survey by consulting and IT services firm Accenture has found.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt has given all medical practices a 2015 deadline for providing online access to their records, but statistics from the survey show there is still a long way to go.

Accenture surveyed 9,000 consumers from nine countries in a bid to examine their attitudes to accessing their own electronic medical records, and managing their own health.

It found that of the 1,000 adults from the UK that were surveyed, 77 per cent believed they should have full access to their electronic medical records. However, when compared with Accenture's Doctors Survey, only a third of doctors (34 per cent) share this belief, with the majority (60 per cent) believing that patients should only have limited access to their electronic records.

The vast majority of UK consumers (97 per cent) and doctors (94 per cent) who were surveyed agree that patients should have some degree of access to their records, but 36 per cent of UK consumers said they did not even know whether their medical provider offered the ability to access their records online.

Of the 847 respondents that said they did not have access to the records, 42 per cent said they would consider switching to a physician who offers online access.

New proposals announced last month by prime minister David Cameron to introduce email, Skype and phone consultations, would enable patients to see GPs seven days a week in and out of office hours.

However, in the UK only 25 per cent of consumers believed that it was "very important" to be able to contact their medical provider through email. Thirty-five per cent said it was "somewhat important", while 40 per cent believed it is not very important or not important at all.

Globally, more than 80 per cent of consumers feel it is important to be able to manage their appointments electronically and 76 per cent say it is important to receive electronic reminders from their medical providers. The ability to request prescriptions electronically is also important to the majority of UK respondents (69 per cent), and this is something that many GP practices are attempting to roll out, with 1,173 already live as of 8 November.

The ability to book online appointments is something else that the health secretary has tried to push, but only 39 per cent of consumers in the UK said they can electronically book, make or change appointments.

The survey was conducted in July 2013.