Electronic Medical Record Conversion Issues
Health records date back to the Ancient Greeks and Astrologers who charted observations, symptoms and outcomes. Today, we are documenting health information in either a paper chart or a digital version of a patient’s chart in a computer called an electronic health record. According to Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services, “an electronic health record (EHR) is defined as an electronic version of a patient’s medical history, that is maintained by the provider over time, and may include all of the key administrative clinical data relevant to that persons care under a particular provider, including demographics, progress notes, problems, medications, vital signs, past medical history, immunizations, …show more content…
The paper chart consisted of documents usually divided into sections with similar information corresponding to a particular tab. The American College of Surgeons (ACOS) made significant changes when it came to record keeping. They sought to make to improvements to ensure patients charts were kept accurate, completed and managed in an accessible manner. The healthcare industry realized the importance and benefit of documenting patient care as it was not only a way to take better care of patients, but the health record became crucial in the safety and quality of the patient experience. With the advancement of computers in the 1960’s , along with the change of the Social Security Act introducing Medicare and Medicaid who required data for reimbursement led to the opportunity to maintain records electronically and no longer use the computer just for financial transactions. Throughout the years different companies developed programs to allow all areas of healthcare the ability to utilize the benefits of applications to assist with patient …show more content…
However, it was extremely expensive to purchase and maintain this equipment that only larger organizations such as Kaiser Permanente were able to take advantage of these new developments leaving a lot of the industry left out of this technology. In 2004, there was a national effort to bring health information technology to help improve healthcare. Congress passed the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH), this legislation provided incentives and subsidies to assist in the implementation of the electronic health record in 2009. Providers now had the assistance they needed to move way from paper and transition to a digital format. Through the assistance of the government, the implementation and the adoption of health information technology soared allowing an infrastructure to bridge professionals, organizations, patients, and insurance companies. The Office of the National Coordinator for Healthcare Technology (ONC) reported in May 2016, from years 2008 to 2015 there were 96% of hospitals and 87% of physician practices using an electronic health record. This widespread movement enhanced patient care, and brought numerous benefits in the way we treat
Health records date back to the Ancient Greeks and Astrologers who charted observations, symptoms and outcomes. Today, we are documenting health information in either a paper chart or a digital version of a patient’s chart in a computer called an electronic health record. According to Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services, “an electronic health record (EHR) is defined as an electronic version of a patient’s medical history, that is maintained by the provider over time, and may include all of the key administrative clinical data relevant to that persons care under a particular provider, including demographics, progress notes, problems, medications, vital signs, past medical history, immunizations, …show more content…
The paper chart consisted of documents usually divided into sections with similar information corresponding to a particular tab. The American College of Surgeons (ACOS) made significant changes when it came to record keeping. They sought to make to improvements to ensure patients charts were kept accurate, completed and managed in an accessible manner. The healthcare industry realized the importance and benefit of documenting patient care as it was not only a way to take better care of patients, but the health record became crucial in the safety and quality of the patient experience. With the advancement of computers in the 1960’s , along with the change of the Social Security Act introducing Medicare and Medicaid who required data for reimbursement led to the opportunity to maintain records electronically and no longer use the computer just for financial transactions. Throughout the years different companies developed programs to allow all areas of healthcare the ability to utilize the benefits of applications to assist with patient …show more content…
However, it was extremely expensive to purchase and maintain this equipment that only larger organizations such as Kaiser Permanente were able to take advantage of these new developments leaving a lot of the industry left out of this technology. In 2004, there was a national effort to bring health information technology to help improve healthcare. Congress passed the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH), this legislation provided incentives and subsidies to assist in the implementation of the electronic health record in 2009. Providers now had the assistance they needed to move way from paper and transition to a digital format. Through the assistance of the government, the implementation and the adoption of health information technology soared allowing an infrastructure to bridge professionals, organizations, patients, and insurance companies. The Office of the National Coordinator for Healthcare Technology (ONC) reported in May 2016, from years 2008 to 2015 there were 96% of hospitals and 87% of physician practices using an electronic health record. This widespread movement enhanced patient care, and brought numerous benefits in the way we treat