Knowledge@Wharton: Does Connectivity Help — or Hurt — the Doctor-Patient Relationship?

Christian Terwiesch, a Wharton professor of operations, information and decisions, has co-authored two new studies related to technology and health care. The first, which examined the impact of e-visits on primary care, found some surprisingly negative results about connectivity: E-visits can take up more of a physician’s time rather than making patient contacts simpler and more efficient. That has contributed to more physicians feeling overburdened and burnt out, with less ability to take on new patients. The second paper looked at how some of those negative effects could be turned around. Terwiesch sat down with Knowledge@Wharton to talk about these topics, which he describes as a “hot area” that sits at the intersection of medicine and management. Listen to the original podcast from Knowledge@Wharton.