Electronic Medical Records

Although Electronic Medical Record (EMR) systems have been around since the early 1960s, governmental incentive programs have only been recently established to encourage providers to adopt such systems (Calman et al., 2012). Typically, an EMR includes patient information such as patient demographics, dictated reports, diagnostic test results (laboratory, radiology and pathology), medications and immunizations, progress notes, orders, patient notes, flow sheets, legal correspondence, consents and registration forms, etc. Hence, the purpose of an EMR is to automate and streamline a healthcare facility’s workflow. The primary benefits of implementing EMR systems include improvements in patient safety and quality of care as well as efficiency and savings (Friedman et al., 2013). Based on a recent survey of 33 chief information officers, hospitals with advanced EMR systems achieved significant operational and administrative benefits including but not limited to a 76% reduction in turnaround time for orders, a 73% improvement in drug order to administration time, a 67% and 61% reduction in costs associated with paper forms and transcription services respectively, a 58% reduction in duplicate lab testing, a 42% improvement in reimbursement for both inpatient and outpatient services, and finally an 18% reduction in length of stay (Friedman et al., 2013). Recent studies have also suggested that implementation of a Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) system could help avoid adverse drug events and consequently shorten hospital stays and reduce costs (Hillestad et al., 2005). Moreover, since a majority of medication errors are related to inadequate patient information, ordering medications within an EMR can provide safety checkpoints s...

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...ative benefits of EMR systems should outweigh the costs associated with its implementation.

Works Cited

Calman, N., Hauser, D., Lurio, J., Wu, W.Y., & Pichardo, M. (2012, November). Strengthening public health and primary care collaboration through electronic health records. American Journal of Public Health, 102(11), 13-18.

Friedman, D.J., Parrish, R.G., & Ross, D.A. (2013, September). Electronic health records and US public health: Current realities and future promise. American Journal of Public Health, 103(9), 1560-1567.

Hamilton, B. R. (2011). Electronic health records. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.

Hillestad, R., Bigelow, J., Bower, A., Girosi, F., Meili, R., Scoville, R., & Taylor, R. (2005, September). Can electronic medical record systems transform health care? potential health benefits, savings, and costs. Health Affairs, 24(5), 1103-1117.