More Docs Are Using Electronic Health Records, But Challenges Remain
<p>The adoption of basic electronic health records by the nation's primary care and specialist physicians has risen over the past year, though researchers note that additional training and assistance will likely be needed to accelerate the trend and enable providers to take advantage of the full range of EHR functionality, according to a <a href="/publications/journal-article/2013/jun/meeting-meaningful-use-criteria-and-managing-patient">new study</a> in the journal <em>Annals of Internal Medicine</em>.</p><p>The new survey results find that the share of physicians using a basic EHR—for example, to view lab results or order prescription drugs electronically—grew from nearly 34 percent in early 2011 to 44 percent by March 2012. More advanced use of the tools for such functions as exchanging information among providers or managing the care provided to all of a practice's patients remains relatively uncommon, however. The study’s authors are from Mathematica Policy Research, The Commonwealth Fund, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Mongan Institute for Health Policy at Massachusetts General Hospital.</p>
<p>Visit commonwealthfund.org to read a summary of the article and <a href="/blog/2013/health-information-technology-gateway-progress">a commentary</a> on the new findings and the value of health information technology by the Fund's Anne-Marie J. Audet, M.D., and David Blumenthal, M.D. </p>