{"id":16459,"date":"2025-08-05T16:42:00","date_gmt":"2025-08-05T16:42:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.intelerad.com\/en\/?p=16459"},"modified":"2026-01-29T05:21:28","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T05:21:28","slug":"the-new-standard-for-patient-engagement-is-transparency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intelerad.com\/en\/2025\/08\/05\/the-new-standard-for-patient-engagement-is-transparency\/","title":{"rendered":"The New Standard for Patient Engagement is Transparency\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tPatient engagement has become a major competitive differentiator driven by increased demand for transparency in medical care, with patients expecting to view test results, manage care, and communicate with providers on their own time. Despite tools like Epic’s MyChart providing access to labs and prescriptions, medical imaging remains disconnected\u2014patients often wait days or weeks for imaging results, creating a critical gap in the care experience.\n

What do patients expect from healthcare transparency today?<\/h2>\nPatients are no longer satisfied with fragmented communication or delayed access to their own records. They expect to view test results, manage care, and communicate with providers on their own time, from their own devices.\n\nTools like Epic’s MyChart<\/a> were designed to meet this need, providing access to labs, prescriptions, and visit summaries. Despite the popularization of these tools, one critical piece of the care experience remains disconnected: medical imaging.\n

Why is medical imaging access a problem for patient engagement?<\/h2>\nPatients often wait days or even weeks for access to imaging results. Historically, patients have been handed a CD or access to an entirely different system to view their scans, adding an extra step and delaying delivery. Imaging is an important diagnostic component that often shapes the treatment plan, so this disconnect often leads to dissatisfaction. This is especially true for those managing chronic conditions or facing complex care decisions.\n

What do patients want beyond basic engagement?<\/h2>\nToday’s patients expect not only visibility into their records, but also the ability to act on them. When imaging is delayed or hidden behind technical barriers, it undercuts the engagement and agency health systems are working to build.\n\nRecent research shows that 96% of patients prefer immediate access <\/strong>to test results via patient portals, even before their provider has reviewed them. This reflects a growing desire for ownership and emotional preparedness. Patients want time to review, research, and process their results in advance so they can show up informed and ready to participate in care decisions.\n

Why is imaging access especially important for patients with chronic conditions?<\/h2>\nThis need is especially pronounced for patients living with chronic or complex conditions, who often navigate care across multiple providers and specialties. These patients are frequently coordinating care with oncologists, primary care providers, surgeons, therapists, etc., and imaging plays a central role in almost every encounter. When patients can’t easily access or share their own imaging, it adds friction to every step of that journey.\n\nProviding timely, diagnostic-quality imaging access within a familiar portal like MyChart turns it into a true hub of continuity where patients can return to between visits, during moments of uncertainty, or when preparing for a second opinion. Instead of relying on phone calls, mailed discs, or repeated imaging, patients are empowered to share their records with clarity and confidence.\n

How does integrated imaging access improve long-term patient engagement?<\/h2>\nWhen imaging access is integrated into the tools patients already use, it creates a stronger foundation for long-term engagement, communication, and partnership in care.\n

How can health systems close the imaging access gap?<\/h2>\nThe key to improving patient engagement does not lie in introducing a new platform, rather enhancing the one that patients and providers already trust. By embedding imaging directly into Epic’s MyChart, health systems can eliminate the fragmentation that interferes with sharing and managing imaging.\n\nThis integration also deepens the relationship between patients and their health system. When imaging is easily accessible through the same portal patients already use to manage other aspects of their care, it reinforces MyChart as a trusted, go-to destination before and after appointments.\n

What are the long-term benefits of integrated imaging for health systems?<\/h2>\nOver time, this consistency builds familiarity, confidence, and loyalty. Patients are more likely to stay engaged with providers who make it easy to access and understand their own health data, especially during complex or emotionally charged care moments.\n\nFor hospitals, it’s also a strategic extension of an existing investment. Rather than bolting on another siloed tool, integrating InteleShare\u2122<\/a> with MyChart enhances what’s already in place. This strengthens patient communication, improves provider workflows, and lays the groundwork for more connected, patient-centered care.\n

What results have health systems seen from connected imaging experiences?<\/h2>\nWhen patients are empowered with access to their imaging, engagement improves. Health systems that paired thoughtful portal design with direct provider encouragement saw:\n