Metadata Correction: Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records: Experiences From the Field and Future Opportunities (original) (raw)
Meaningful Use of Electronic Health Records: Experiences From the Field and Future Opportunities
JMIR medical informatics, 2015
With the aim of improving health care processes through health information technology (HIT), the US government has promulgated requirements for "meaningful use" (MU) of electronic health records (EHRs) as a condition for providers receiving financial incentives for the adoption and use of these systems. Considerable uncertainty remains about the impact of these requirements on the effective application of EHR systems. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)-sponsored Centers for Education and Research in Therapeutics (CERTs) critically examined the impact of the MU policy relating to the use of medications and jointly developed recommendations to help inform future HIT policy. We gathered perspectives from a wide range of stakeholders (N=35) who had experience with MU requirements, including academicians, practitioners, and policy makers from different health care organizations including and beyond the CERTs. Specific issues and recommendations were discussed...
Electronic health records (EHRs) have emerged among health information technology as Bmeaningful use^ to improve the quality and efficiency of healthcare, and health disparities in population health. In other instances, they have also shown lack of interoperability, functionality and many medical errors. With proper implementation and training, are electronic health records a viable source in managing population health? The primary objective of this systematic review is to assess the relationship of electronic health records' use on population health through the identification and analysis of facilitators and barriers to its adoption for this purpose. Authors searched Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) and MEDLINE (PubMed), 10/02/2012-10/02/2017, core clinical/academic journals, MEDLINE full text, English only, human species and evaluated the articles that were germane to our research objective. Each article was analyzed by multiple reviewers. Group members recognized common facilitators and barriers associated with EHRs effect on population health. A final list of articles was selected by the group after three consensus meetings (n = 55). Among a total of 26 factors identified, 63% (147/232) of those were facilitators and 37% (85/232) barriers. About 70% of the facilitators consisted of productivity/efficiency in EHRs occurring 33 times, increased quality and data management each occurring 19 times, surveillance occurring 17 times, and preventative care occurring 15 times. About 70% of the barriers consisted of missing data occurring 24 times, no standards (interoperability) occurring 13 times, productivity loss occurring 12 times, and technology too complex occurring 10 times. The analysis identified more facilitators than barriers to the use of the EHR to support public health. Wider adoption of the EHR and more comprehensive standards for interoperability will only enhance the ability for the EHR to support this important area of surveillance and disease prevention. This review identifies more facilitators than barriers to using the EHR to support public health, which implies a certain level of usability and acceptance to use the EHR in this manner. The public-health industry should combine their efforts with the interoperability projects to make the EHR both fully adopted and fully interoperable. This will greatly increase the availability, accuracy, and comprehensiveness of data across the country, which will enhance benchmarking and disease surveillance/prevention capabilities.
Seven years after Meaningful Use: Physicians’ and nurses’ experiences with electronic health records
Health Care Management Review, 2019
Although the federal government's Meaningful Use electronic health record (EHR) implementation program resulted in some successes, there have been many challenges. The purpose of this study was to obtain detailed empirical data to better understand physicians' and nurses' experiences with EHRs. We conducted in-depth interviews with 30 physicians and nurses from two large health systems that were focused on attaining Stage 3 Meaningful Use criteria. Thematic framework analysis identified themes related to perceived benefits and challenges with EHR use. Participants appreciated benefits such as real-time patient data and easier access to information. Challenges included lack of interoperability across units, and this seemed to underlie many other noted challenges such as increased workload, insufficient training, and the perceived need for workarounds. Two key findings included mixed messages about trust in the EHR's information and its interference with interpersonal relationships. Results suggest that conservation of resources theory may be a useful strategy for understanding behaviors that enhance or undermine effective EHR use. Implications for policy and practice are discussed. I n 2009, the passage of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act created incentives for electronic health record (EHR) adoption (HealthIT.gov, 2015). HITECH's Meaningful Use program, managed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), intended to move providers beyond EHR basics, tying financial incentives to increasingly sophisticated use of EHRs for decision support over time (Blumenthal & Tavenner, 2010). However, as of 2014 only 2% of U.S. hospitals and 12% of physician practices had systems that could meet the Meaningful Use criteria (DeAngelis, 2014). In 2016, CMS announced the existing Meaningful Use program would be discontinued and replaced because of persistent resistance, problems, and concerns with EHR use (AHIMA,
Journal of Medical Internet Research, 2021
Coincident with the tsunami of COVID-19–related publications, there has been a surge of studies using real-world data, including those obtained from the electronic health record (EHR). Unfortunately, several of these high-profile publications were retracted because of concerns regarding the soundness and quality of the studies and the EHR data they purported to analyze. These retractions highlight that although a small community of EHR informatics experts can readily identify strengths and flaws in EHR-derived studies, many medical editorial teams and otherwise sophisticated medical readers lack the framework to fully critically appraise these studies. In addition, conventional statistical analyses cannot overcome the need for an understanding of the opportunities and limitations of EHR-derived studies. We distill here from the broader informatics literature six key considerations that are crucial for appraising studies utilizing EHR data: data completeness, data collection and hand...
New Unintended Adverse Consequences of Electronic Health Records
IMIA Yearbook
SummaryAlthough the health information technology industry has made considerable progress in the design, development, implementation, and use of electronic health records (EHRs), the lofty expectations of the early pioneers have not been met. In 2006, the Provider Order Entry Team at Oregon Health & Science University described a set of unintended adverse consequences (UACs), or unpredictable, emergent problems associated with computer-based provider order entry implementation, use, and maintenance. Many of these originally identified UACs have not been completely addressed or alleviated, some have evolved over time, and some new ones have emerged as EHRs became more widely available. The rapid increase in the adoption of EHRs, coupled with the changes in the types and attitudes of clinical users, has led to several new UACs, specifically: complete clinical information unavailable at the point of care; lack of innovations to improve system usability leading to frustrating user exper...
Educating Clinicians on New Elements Incorporated Into the Electronic Health Record
CIN: Computers, Informatics, Nursing, 2013
With the widespread use of health information technologies, there is a growing need to educate healthcare providers on the use of technological innovations. Appropriate health information technology education is critical to ensure quality documentation, patient privacy, and safe healthcare. One promising strategy for educating clinicians is the use of participatory e-learning based on the principles of Web 2.0. However, there is a lack of literature on the practical applications of this training strategy in clinical settings. In this article, we briefly review the theoretical background and published literature on distance education, or e-learning, of health information technology, focusing on electronic health records. Next, we describe one example of a theoretically grounded interactive educational intervention that was implemented to educate nurses on new elements incorporated into the existing electronic health record system. We discuss organizational factors facilitating nurses' in-service education and provide an example of software designed to create interactive e-learning presentations. We also evaluate the results of our educational project and make suggestions for future applications. In conclusion, we suggest four core principles that should guide the construction and implementation of distant education for healthcare practitioners. The US healthcare system is at a pivotal point of change. The widespread use o f electronic health records (EHRs), implemented as part of the health information technology (HIT) revolution, is here to stay. Enacted as a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, HIT has been instigated by the 2009 Health Technology for Economical and Clinical Health Act. 1 According to these acts, most healthcare providers across the US are required to become meaningful users of HIT by 2015. 1 Meaningful users are healthcare providers who use ''certified Electronic Health Record technology in ways that can be significantly measured in quality and in quantity.'' 2 The implementation of HIT is obligatory for providers receiving Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement. Healthcare practices that meaningfully use HIT will receive monetary incentives, whereas practices that fail to meet meaningful use criteria by 2015 will be penalized. 2
Background Healthcare professionals develop workarounds rather than using electronic health record (EHR) systems. Understanding the reasons for workarounds is important to facilitate user-centered design and alignment between work context and available health information technology tools. Objective To examine both paper-and computerbased workarounds to the use of EHR systems in three benchmark institutions. Methods Qualitative data were collected in 11 primary care outpatient clinics across three healthcare institutions. Data collection methods included direct observation and opportunistic questions. In total, 120 clinic staff and providers and 118 patients were observed. All data were analyzed using previously developed workaround categories and examined for potential new categories. Additionally, workarounds were coded as either paper-or computer-based. Results Findings corresponded to 10 of 11 workaround categories identified in previous research. All 10 of these categories applied to paper-based workarounds; five categories also applied to computerbased workarounds. One new category, no correct path (eg, a desired option did not exist in the computer interface, precipitating a workaround), was identified for computer-based workarounds. The most consistent reasons for workarounds across the three institutions were efficiency, memory, and awareness. Conclusions Consistent workarounds across institutions suggest common challenges in outpatient clinical settings and failures to accommodate these challenges in EHR design. An examination of workarounds provides insight into how providers adapt to limiting EHR systems. Part of the design process for computer interfaces should include user-centered methods particular to providers and healthcare settings to ensure uptake and usability. Flanagan ME, et al. J Am Med Inform Assoc 2013;0:1-8. electronic health record use at three Paper-and computer-based workarounds to http://jamia.bmj.com/content/early/2013/03/13/amiajnl-2012-000982.full.html Updated information and services can be found at: These include: References http://jamia.bmj.com/content/early/2013/03/13/amiajnl-2012-000982.full.html#ref-list-1
A National Study of Challenges to Electronic Health Record Adoption and Meaningful Use
Medical Care, 2014
Background: Adoption and implementation of electronic health records (EHRs) has not been without challenges as it infuses technology into what has been a historically manual process of recording patient information. In an effort to identify these challenges, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology leveraged the Regional Extension Center population of over 140,000 providers to develop a structured way to track challenges to EHR adoption and Meaningful Use (MU).
Life
Despite the great advances in the field of electronic health records (EHRs) over the past 25 years, implementation and adoption challenges persist, and the benefits realized remain below expectations. This scoping review aimed to present current knowledge about the effects of EHR implementation and the barriers to EHR adoption and use. A literature search was conducted in PubMed, Web of Science, IEEE Xplore Digital Library and ACM Digital Library for studies published between January 2005 and May 2020. In total, 7641 studies were identified of which 142 met the criteria and attained the consensus of all researchers on inclusion. Most studies (n = 91) were published between 2017 and 2019 and 81 studies had the United States as the country of origin. Both positive and negative effects of EHR implementation were identified, relating to clinical work, data and information, patient care and economic impact. Resource constraints, poor/insufficient training and technical/educational suppor...
Clinically Excellent Use of the Electronic Health Record: Review
JMIR Human Factors, 2018
Background: The transition to the electronic health record (EHR) has brought forth a rapid cultural shift in the world of medicine, presenting both new challenges as well as opportunities for improving health care. As clinicians work to adapt to the changes imposed by the EHR, identification of best practices around the clinically excellent use of the EHR is needed. Objective: Using the domains of clinical excellence previously defined by the Johns Hopkins Miller Coulson Academy of Clinical Excellence, this review aims to identify best practices around the clinically excellent use of the EHR. Methods: The authors searched the PubMed database, using keywords related to clinical excellence domains and the EHR, to capture the English-language, peer-reviewed literature published between January 1, 2000, and August 2, 2016. One author independently reviewed each article and extracted relevant data. Results: The search identified 606 titles, with the majority (393/606, 64.9%) in the domain of communication and interpersonal skills. Twenty-eight of the 606 (4.6%) titles were excluded from full-text review, primarily due to lack of availability of the full-text article. The remaining 578 full-text articles reviewed were related to clinical excellence generally (3/578, 0.5%) or the specific domains of communication and interpersonal skills (380/578, 65.7%), diagnostic acumen (31/578, 5.4%), skillful negotiation of the health care system (4/578, 0.7%), scholarly approach to clinical practice (41/578, 7.1%), professionalism and humanism (2/578, 0.4%), knowledge (97/578, 16.8%), and passion for clinical medicine (20/578, 3.5%). Conclusions: Results suggest that as familiarity and expertise are developed, clinicians are leveraging the EHR to provide clinically excellent care. Best practices identified included deliberate physical configuration of the clinical space to involve sharing the screen with patients and limiting EHR use during difficult and emotional topics. Promising horizons for the EHR include the ability to augment participation in pragmatic trials, identify adverse drug effects, correlate genomic data to clinical outcomes, and follow data-driven guidelines. Clinician and patient satisfaction with the EHR has generally improved with time, and hopefully continued clinician, and patient input will lead to a system that satisfies all.