Study: Access, Efficient Exchange Enhanced by EHR

Among the primary benefits of a Meaningful Use certified EHR is the ability for physicians and members of the care team to have immediate access to test results and the ability to exchange prescription data electronically.

A recently released study, conducted by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC) researchers, finds that a majority of office-based physicians were able to view lab results and send medication data electronically. Additionally, the study found that one-third of ambulatory care physicians could send and/or receive patient clinical summaries with other providers.

EPOWERdoc extends these powerful electronic tools to the emergency room with its EMRDoc.

ONC issued a press release detailing the results of the study which examined data from the 2011 National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) Electronic Medical Record Supplement, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics as an annual, nationally representative survey of office-based physicians that collects information on the adoption and use of EMR/EHR systems. The overall sample consisted of 4,326 physician respondents.

“The results of this study are encouraging because they show that a majority of physicians who use electronic health records (EHRs) can electronically exchange test results, medication data and clinical care summaries with patients, all of which are integral to better care coordination and ultimately necessary for universal interoperability,” said Vaishali Patel, an ONC senior advisor and lead author of the study. “As Stage 2 of Meaningful Use moves forward, it will be important to continue monitoring physicians’ exchange capabilities and actual exchange activity to ensure that health information follows the patient wherever they go."

The ONC study found that the adoption of an EHR was the single strongest predictor of electronic exchange capability for e-prescribing, lab test viewing or ordering, and exchanging clinical summaries. Other key findings of the study, published in the American Journal of Managed Care Vol. 19, No. 10, include:

• 55 percent of all physicians had computerized capability to send prescriptions electronically vs. 78 percent of physicians with an EHR.

• 67 percent of all physicians could view electronic lab results vs. 87 percent of physicians with an EHR.

• 42 percent could incorporate lab results into their EHR vs. 73 percent of physicians with an EHR.

• 35 percent could send an electronic order to a lab vs. 54 percent of physicians with an EHR.

• 38 percent could provide clinical summaries to patients vs. 61 percent of physicians with an EHR.

• 31 percent exchanged patient clinical summaries with another provider vs. 49 percent of physicians with an EHR.

For a detailed review of study findings, please visit this link: http://www.ajmc.com/publications/issue/2013/2013-1-vol19-n10/Physician-Capability-to-Electronically-Exchange-Clinical-Information-2011

About EPOWERdoc

EPOWERdoc is a leader in computerized Emergency Department Information Systems (EDIS), using a design team comprised of emergency physicians and nurses. Additionally, EPOWERdoc provides superior medical content for other vendor EMR builds. As it was from the beginning, the EPOWERdoc mission is centered around excellence, integrity and service. Every employee is committed to going above and beyond in meeting the needs of the client, while focusing on the specialized needs of the physicians, nurses and hospitals they serve.