| Though the acronym most commonly used to | | | | providers. |
| refer to the conglomeration of medical, patient, | | | | How can medical practices that are struggling to |
| and government insurance related data is still EMR, | | | | afford simpler medical practice management |
| for "electronic medical record(s)", the acronym of | | | | software systems and more limited EMR |
| choice may be changing to EHR, or "Electronic | | | | software pay for far ranging and still evolving EHR |
| Health Record(s)". | | | | software programs? How will health providers |
| The reason for that seems to be that the | | | | know whether they are buying quality medical |
| government is trying to shift the emphasis in the | | | | software when the standards for the software |
| world of medical administration IT and medical | | | | are changing and evolving rapidly? The transition |
| practice management software from doctor-only | | | | from paper-based, or even discrete pc-based files |
| to doctor and patient, and most likely, | | | | (or combinations thereof) to a full-blown EMR |
| government agency and admin. They will not | | | | software system can be costly in terms of |
| longer be thought of as records that reside | | | | dollars, training time, and patience in learning to |
| merely within a doctor's medical practice | | | | use new systems. |
| management system. The goal of the EHR is that | | | | Some private insurers are offering financial |
| all concerned parties - doctors, pharmacists, | | | | bonuses and incentives to doctors and medical |
| patients, hospital administrators, and the patient | | | | practices investing in sophisticated EMR and EHR |
| himself - can have access to these records. | | | | software systems. There are also efforts by |
| EMRs today have similar goals but do not quite | | | | some private Healthcare Management societies to |
| have the breadth of access, both for providers | | | | certify EHRs that meet a set of standards |
| and for patients. Development of EHRs that | | | | determined by HL-7, a national standard setting |
| encompass medical patient and treatment data | | | | group commissioned by the government to set |
| from many sources, and are accessible to many | | | | EHR standards for the medical software |
| users, is going to be expensive and complicated. | | | | developers. |
| Other countries have allocated more money | | | | There are currently so many fine EMR software |
| toward this than the United States. There has | | | | systems being sold that may not meet the |
| been more development of such interconnected | | | | idealized standards set by some of these |
| medical software systems in countries where | | | | societies. The hope and understanding in the |
| medicine is a more socialized and | | | | industry is that certification standards will be |
| government-controlled function. | | | | applied lightly for now, while the industry learns |
| Last year, the HHS Secretary commissioned the | | | | how to apply such medical software standards |
| Institute of Medicine to create a standardized | | | | realistically and economically. As expanded EMR |
| model for the Electronic Health Record. It | | | | EHR use takes hold in medical practices and health |
| emphasizes such features as results management | | | | organizations across the country, it will begin to |
| (all medical results electronically available) decision | | | | bear fruit by providing improved patient care and |
| support in areas like drug interactions, and easy | | | | data management. No one is quite ready to throw |
| electronic connections between doctor, patients, | | | | the baby out with the bathwater. |
| hospital administration, and other medical | | | | |