Groups Push Physicians and Patients to Embrace Electronic Health Records
- Tracy Hampton, PhD
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
- KEYWORDS:
- CONFIDENTIALITY
- INFORMATION SYSTEMS
- MEDICAL RECORDS
- MEDICAL RECORDS SYSTEMS, COMPUTERIZED
- PHYSICIANS
Experts agree that electronic health records can save lives and money by reducing the costs and harms associated with medical errors and by cutting down on redundant tests and procedures. But a number of unresolved issues, including affordability and privacy concerns, have made hospitals, physicians, and patients slow to adopt them.
Although those hurdles remain, government and nonprofit organizations, as well as technology giants such as Microsoft and Google, are attempting to drive the technology forward. What is envisioned is an easily accessible electronic system that, by coordinating the storage and retrieval of individuals' health records, increases efficiency, reduces costs, and promotes standardization of care.
A variety of groups are working to entice physicians and patients to record and store medical information electronically.
PERSONAL RECORDS
Numerous vendors have been marketing patient health records that are managed and controlled by each patient, but only a minority of consumers are buying into them. Although …
