Question

Electronic Health Records (EHRs) have become the backbone of healthcare data systems. Discuss the pros and cons of the proliferation of EHRs from both the patient and provider perspectives.

Answer 1

Electron health records that make information available instantly and securely to authorized users. While an EHR does contain the medical and treatment histories of patients, an EHR system is built to go beyond standard clinical data collected in a provider’s office and can be inclusive of a broader view of a patient’s care. EHRs are a vital part of health IT and can:

Contain a patient’s medical history, diagnoses, medications, treatment plans, immunization dates, allergies, radiology images, and laboratory and test results

Allow access to evidence-based tools that providers can use to make decisions about a patient’s care

Automate and streamline provider workflow

One of the key features of an EHR is that health information can be created and managed by authorized providers in a digital format capable of being shared with other providers across more than one health care organization. EHRs are built to share information with other health care providers and organizations – such as laboratories, specialists, medical imaging facilities, pharmacies, emergency facilities, and school and workplace clinics – so they contain information from all clinicians involved in a patient’s care.

Pros of Electronic Health Records

When you computerize your records with a certified EHR, you can now demonstrate Meaningful Use and obtain the financial incentives offered by Medicare and Medicaid (the government encourages EHR usage in the name of efficiency, hence the incentives).

Additional financial incentives from the government are also available only if medical professionals use an EHR to document their compliance with value based care initiatives, such as data to support the Patient Centered Medical Home or PCHM model.

Using templates for your particular specialty will ensure that staff members enter the proper information on patients before closing out the record (different information is required for an oncology appointment and a visit to the OB/GYN, for example).

You can activate a patient portal with your EHR, enabling patients to enter their own details instead of having them write it on a stack of documents to be typed in later by your staff.

Cons of Electronic Health Records

Whenever you computerize records, you have to be careful about protecting the data from unauthorized access. You can say that one con of adopting an EHR is that extreme diligence is required to shield sensitive data from cyber criminals and malicious hackers.

Recent news accounts have underscored the danger of ransomware, where hackers install malware on the medical organization’s servers. Their aim is to hold the data hostage until they receive money. In the meantime, patient details are unavailable, and work can slow down. There is also the potential for the public to learn about the data breach, ruining the practice’s reputation.

Such concerns can be alleviated if you work with IT professionals to shore up your system with a firewall and other software security protocols. Adopting a cloud-based EHR solution gives you even greater flexibility, since you can quickly get back up and running via the cloud backup, such as if there is a server problem on your end, or if a natural disaster requires you to move your staff to a temporary location.

Another potential con: If the EHR comes from a developer that has not updated on a regular basis for some time now, this is a warning sign that they may not be invested in the future of their software. What’s worse, the developers may no longer have the capability to upgrade their EHR in accordance with industry best practices and government regulations. It’s best to go with an EHR software provider with a proven track record and many years in the industry.

Carefully Weigh the Pros and Cons of Electronic Health Records for Your Practice

Doctors are trained to be prudent and cautious about adopting new techniques, wanting evidence and documentation that a new way of doing things will benefit them and their patients (in improved care as well as saving time, for example). The same can be said for the software and computers that medical staffers will use every day in the course of diagnosing and treating patients.

There is no need to instantly adopt the latest computer technology or software in your medical organization as soon as it’s released. Early adopters sometimes have to suffer through bugs and crashes with new software, so waiting to see how the latest version shakes out in actual field use is a safe approach before upgrading your own software.

But dragging your heels about finally transitioning to a solid, well-tested version of an EHR that would clearly benefit patients and staff can wind up turning into a drag on your bottom line. After reviewing the various pros and cons of EHR usage, you’ll undoubtedly determine that adopting a software approach will be the best option for your organization.

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