RAND Research Topic: Electronic Medical Records 2012-05-25T23:29:07Z Copyright (c) 2012, The RAND Corporation RAND Corporation http://www.rand.org/topics/electronic-medical-records.html Medical Records Immune to Tornado in Joplin, Mo. http://www.rand.org/commentary/2012/05/23/USAT.html May 23, 2012 May 23, 2012 Across the country, electronic medical records, designed first and foremost to make health care delivery safer and more efficient, are proving valuable when disaster strikes, write Mahshid Abir and Art Kellermann. A Prototype Knowledge-Sharing Service for Clinical Decision Support Artifacts http://www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/TR1207.html May 17, 2012 May 17, 2012 This report, by researchers from Partners HealthCare and the RAND Corporation, primarily describes the work associated with Task 4.8 of the Advancing Clinical Decision Support effort, a project intended to accelerate the effective use of computer-based clinical decision support (CDS) interventions to facilitate evidence-based clinical practice. Twenty-two CDS artifacts and 16 value sets were developed that cover the five CDS intervention types. Developing a Framework for Establishing Clinical Decision Support Meaningful Use Objectives for Clinical Specialties http://www.rand.org/pubs/technical_reports/TR1129.html Apr 2, 2012 Apr 2, 2012 The federal electronic health record (EHR) incentive program includes clinical decision support (CDS) as a central requirement of improving health outcomes; however, a process for identifying and prioritizing the most promising targets for CDS has not been established. This report describes a protocol for eliciting high-priority targets for electronic CDS for individual clinical specialties and summarizes lessons learned. Focus on Health Information Technology http://www.rand.org/pubs/corporate_pubs/CP639z4-2012-03.html Mar 30, 2012 Mar 30, 2012 For nearly a decade, RAND researchers have studied how health information technology (HIT) stands to change health care. Do Physicians Need a 'Shopping Cart' for Health Care Services? http://www.rand.org/commentary/2012/02/22/JAMA.html Feb 22, 2012 Feb 22, 2012 Providing physicians with cost data in real time automatically as a part of the electronic medical record could make them better purchasers for their patients and provide better value, writes Robert H. Brook. Early Adopters of Electronic Prescribing Struggle to Make Meaningful Use of Formulary Checks and Medication History Documentation http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20120007.html Jan 1, 2012 Jan 1, 2012 In offices where e-prescribing was implemented, prescribers used information about formularies and drug benefits, but missing information reduced confidence in these resources and led to paper-based workarounds. Influence of Integrated Electronic Medical Records and Computerized Nursing Notes on Nurses' Time Spent in Documentation http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20120062.html Jan 1, 2012 Jan 1, 2012 With or without electronic charting options, nurses spend about 19% of their time completing documentation, compared with all other categories of care. High-priority Drug -- Drug Interactions for Use in Electronic Health Records http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201200116.html Jan 1, 2012 Jan 1, 2012 A panel of experts highlighted the complexity of issues surrounding development and implementation of a set of high-severity, clinically significant drug–drug interactions (DDIs) for use in electronic health records (EHRs). Online Guide Helps Health Organizations Adopt Electronic Health Records http://www.rand.org/news/press/2011/12/14.html Dec 14, 2011 Dec 14, 2011 A new online tool, called the "Unintended Consequences Guide," is available from the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality to help hospitals and other health care organizations anticipate, avoid, and address problems that can occur when adopting and using electronic health records. Today's 'Meaningful Use' Standard for Medication Orders by Hospitals May Save Few Lives; Later Stages May Do More http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100190.html Oct 1, 2011 Oct 1, 2011 Current federal standards for hospital "meaningful use" of health information technology--which requires electronic medication orders for 30 percent of eligible patients--are probably too low to reduce deaths from heart failure and heart attack among hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries. Guide to Reducing Unintended Consequences of Electronic Health Records http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100261.html Aug 1, 2011 Aug 1, 2011 The Guide to Reducing Unintended Consequences of Electronic Health Records is an online resource designed to help an organization anticipate, avoid, and address problems that can occur when implementing and using an electronic health record (EHR). Clinical Decision Support and Malpractice Risk http://www.rand.org/commentary/2011/07/06/JAMA.html Jul 6, 2011 Jul 6, 2011 From the standpoint of policy makers, the basic challenge is to ensure that liability concerns do not derail the clinical value of new CDS technology, write Michael Greenberg and M. Susan Ridgely. Can Health Care Information Technology Save Babies? http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100103.html Apr 1, 2011 Apr 1, 2011 Using a 12-year county-level panel, this study found that a 10 percent increase in births that occur in hospitals with electronic medical records reduces neonatal mortality by 16 deaths per 100,000 live births. The Benefits of Health Information Technology: A Review of the Recent Literature Shows Predominantly Positive Results http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20110044.html Mar 1, 2011 Mar 1, 2011 Studies are needed that document the specific challenges of implementing health information technology and how these challenges might be addressed. More Than Four in Five Office-Based Physicians Could Qualify for Federal Electronic Health Record Incentives http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP20110039.html Mar 1, 2011 Mar 1, 2011 Although most physicians qualify for federal incentives to promote adoption of electronic health records, eligibility varies substantially by specialty and practice size. Will Adoption of Electronic Health Records Improve Quality in U.S. Hospitals? http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9570.html Feb 9, 2011 Feb 9, 2011 Shares findings on the potential effects of electronic health records (EHRs) on health care quality, based on analysis of extensive data from 2003 and 2006 on EHR adoption, hospital characteristics, and hospital quality in nearly 2,100 hospitals. Encryption and the Loss of Patient Data http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100104.html Jan 1, 2011 Jan 1, 2011 Encryption is seen as a way to prevent malicious use of patient data, but there is no empirical evidence that it does. Evaluation of the NCPDP Structured and Codified Sig Format for E-Prescriptions http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201100109.html Jan 1, 2011 Jan 1, 2011 This paper reports an assessment of how well the structure and code sets specified in the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs Structured and Codified Sig Format represent ambulatory electronic prescriptions. Electronic Medical Records Not Always Linked to Better Care in Hospitals http://www.rand.org/pubs/external_publications/EP201000136.html Dec 23, 2010 Dec 23, 2010 Use of electronic health records by hospitals across the United States has had only a limited effect on improving the quality of medical care. Electronic Medical Records Not Always Linked to Better Care in Hospitals http://www.rand.org/news/press/2010/12/23.html Dec 23, 2010 Dec 23, 2010 Use of electronic health records by hospitals across the United States has had only a limited effect on improving the quality of medical care.