New Issue Brief Calls for Action on Care Partner Portal Access

The Coalition for Care Partners’ 2025 Issue Brief urges expanded shared access to patient portals for patients, families, and care partners. Co-led by Cait DesRoches, DrPH, Deb Wachenheim, MPP (OpenNotes), and colleagues at the Roger and Flo Lipitz Center to Advance Policy in Aging and Disability at Johns Hopkins, the brief offers recommendations for health systems, vendors, and policymakers. Read the recommendations. [PDF]

Germany: AI-supported Digital OpenNotes in a Primary Care Setting

Time constraints and clear communication are major challenges in the field of primary care. AI might be a solution, however there are plenty of risks as a result of inconsistent responses (hallucinations). Learn how a German research alliance is studying this field. Read more. (open access 🔓)

Wallkamm M, Uhl J, Hötger C, Esch T. AI-supported digital opennotes in primary care setting. THE MIND Bulletin on Mind-Body Medicine Research. 2025;8:13-16. doi:10.61936/themind/202506304 

Commentary: Open Notes in the Context of Humanistic Medicine

Sharing medical records, once radical, is now essential to humanistic medicine. A new commentary by Budd N. Shenkin, MD, places open notes in the tradition of caring, trust, and transparency. He urges healthcare organizations, not just individual clinicians, to embrace record sharing as a core part of compassionate, patient-centered care. Read more. (open access 🔓)

Shenkin BN. Open notes in the context of humanistic medicine. The Journal of Pediatrics: Clinical Practice. 2025;17:200155. doi:10.1016/j.jpedcp.2025.200155

"Aging in America: Survive or Thrive"

Older adults are living longer and redefining aging, but is the U.S. ready to help them thrive? Aging in America: Survive or Thrive, a documentary produced for PBS and supported by The John A. Hartford Foundation (JAHF), explores the challenges and opportunities of supporting an aging population. Learn more and request a screening.

What Do Doctors Think About America’s “Vaccine War”?

Sigall Bell, MD and Tom Delbanco, MD blogged for PBS FRONTLINE with Eileen Costello, MD, an expert in autism. The three discussed the backlash to vaccines in the United States and answered questions following the premier of FRONTLINE's The Vaccine War. Read the blog or watch the episode.