Internet-based developmental screening: a digital divide between English- and Spanish-speaking parents.

Background: Internet-based developmental screening is being implemented in pediatric practices across the United States. Little is known about the application of this technology in poor urban populations.

Objective: We describe here the results of focus groups, surveys, and in-depth interviews during home visits with families served by an urban safety-net organization to address the question of whether it is possible to use Internet or e-mail communication for medical previsit engagement in a population that is majority Hispanic, of low socioeconomic status, and has many non-English-speaking families.

The use of internet-based technology to tailor well-child care encounters.

Objective: The goal was to evaluate the feasibility and acceptance of a new model for well-child care (WCC) in a large health maintenance organization.

Methods: We designed a new model of WCC that engages families in Internet-based developmental and behavioral screening, allows for review of the results before the visit, and allows for selection of the appropriate visit type (e-visit, e-visit with brief provider visit, or extended encounter). The new model was pilot-tested in 2 practices within a large health maintenance organization.