Survey on Electronic Health Record Use

September 1, 2011 – Yesterday I received this email.

“We're hosting a survey about the benefits of EMRs on our company blog. I was wondering if you could help me out by spreading the word about it on the Medinnovation blog or by sharing it via social media. You can check out the survey at: http://www.softwareadvice.com/articles/medical/benefits-of-emr-software-survey-1081611/ .

2,400 providers have already been able to attest meaningful use. We're curious of the impact EMR software is having on the quality and delivery of health care. After gathering the results, we'll post the survey findings in a couple of weeks.

Would you be interested in posting a quick note about this survey on the Medinnovation blog?

Thanks,
Michael
____________________________
Michael Koploy
ERP Analyst
Software Advice

714 Congress Avenue Suite 200
Austin, TX 78701

michael@softwareadvice.com
(512) 364-0129”

I told Michael I would be glad to help him out. A great deal of confusion exists on how many doctors and hospitals are using EHRs, how many of these EHRs meet federal standards of “meaningful use,” and what impact EHRs are having on quality.

For example, Sally Pipes in her July 16, 2011 column reported “Just 1026 registered hospitals and physicians out of a possible 56,599 reported using electronic health records and other health information technologies in accord with federal standards, “ and on September 1, David Classen MD and David Bates, MD, advocates of EHR, citing government and HIMMS data, said,”Some recent surveys suggest that nearly half of outpatient practices and in 44% of U.S. hospitals.”(“Finding the Meaning in Meaningful Use,” New England Journal of Medicine, September, 1, 2011. According to an August 3, 2011 report from Robert Tagalicod, the new director of CMS Office of e-Health Standards and Services, 2,383 eligible providers have successfully attested for the Medicare Electronic Health Record (EHR) – or electronic medical record (EMR) – Incentive Program. One hundred hospitals have also attested.

Only one thing is certain, few seem to know if EHRs improve quality. As Bates and Classen put it, “Even though the concept of meaningful use is extremely attractive, it remains to be shown that the standards that are being established will result in improvement of care.”


Perhaps the following survey will help resolve some of the questions about frequency of EHR use, EHRs meeting federal standards, and impact on quality.

Here is a review of the survey. If you wish to fill it out, go to the link provided above provided by Michael Koplov.


Q.1

Before starting, please share the name of the EHR product you currently use

Q.2
Productivity and Financial Benefits

Please rate these on a scale of 1 to 5. 1 means “I highly disagree” or “I have not experienced this benefit.” 5 means “I highly agree” or “I have experienced this benefit.”

1) Reduces paperwork and space requirements

2) Reduces administrative staff and expenses

3) Improves collection rates; reduces claim denials

4)Reduces transcription costs

5)Improves accuracy of coding; eliminates downcoding

6)Eliminates duplicate data entry

7)Improves intra-office communication

8)Easier compliance with regulations

9)Greater legibility of notes

10)Greater accessibility of charts, inside and outside the office

11)Enhances clinical documentation

Q.3
Quality of Care Improvements

Please rate 1 to 5. 1 means “I highly disagree” or “I have not experienced this benefit.” 5 means “I highly agree” or “I have experienced this benefit.”

1)More accurate and up-to-date patient information

2)Improves coordination of treatment by more than one healthcare provider

3)Improves delivery of preventative care

4)Improves clinical decision making

5)Minimizes unnecessary lab tests

6)Fewer medical errors and improved patient safety

7)Fewer medical errors and improved patient safety

8) Increases opportunity to participate in PQRI and similar pay-for-performance initiatives

Q.4

Please share other benefits not listed here. We will use the best comments as quotations in our report.

PS. After reading this blog, Michael Koplov sent me this followup email.

"Dr. Reece,


Thanks for taking the time to add your comments and share our survey. We are collecting the data using the survey management website Poll Daddy, so a link to our article would be necessary for users to easily navigate to the survey. Also, I wanted to create for you some unique content to post on your blog, in addition to your thoughts on EHR software.


Do you think you could replace the content in your post with this unique, HTML formatted content? This content should have a clickable link, making it easier for your readers to navigate to the survey.


Thank you very much for your help with this.


Best,
Michael
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Software Advice is hosting a survey on the benefits of electronic health records (EHR) software. If you have successfully implemented are in the process of implementing a system please, please help them out by following this link to take the PollDaddy survey: Benefits of Electronic Medical Records (EMR) Software | 2011 Physician Survey.