Advantages And Disadvantages Of EHR

1. Introduction

1.1 Background Information on EHR

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in EHR adoption in many countries this is due to an increasing recognition that a stronger health information technology (HIT) is crucial to achieve a higher quality care at lower costs. EHR has been identified to be an important integral part of an efficient health care information system that guarantees positive health outcomes1-3. According to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), EHR is defined as a repository of patient data in digital form, stored and exchanged securely, and accessible by multiple authorized users4. It contains retrospective, concurrent, and prospective information and its primary purpose is to support

Three major effects on quality are increased adherence to guideline-based care, enhanced surveillance and monitoring, and decreased medication errors. For example, several studies have shown that physicians who had access to clinical practice guidelines and features such as computerized reminders and alerts were far more likely to provide preventive care than were physicians who did not2-4. Improved Efficiency, Productivity, and Cost Reduction In addition to improving the quality of care the patient receives, studies have shown that the EMR can improve efficiency, increase productivity, and lead to cost reductions3,4. It is common for clinicians who do not have EMR access to order a second set of tests because the results from the first set are unavailable, so one way EMR systems improve efficiency is by making test results readily available to clinicians3,4. In addition, EMR features such as computerized reminders and alerts can reduce pharmaceutical costs by prompting physicians to use generic and formulary drugs2-4. EMRs can also provide the infrastructure necessary to measure care processes and aid in continuous quality improvement

Findings

This section details the findings of the reviewed articles on different areas of applications of EHR in the healthcare system. Currently, the roles and the applications of EHR in the healthcare system include: clinical care application/functions, financial function, clinical research function, and administrative function3,6.

3.1 Clinical Application of EHR in Healthcare System

The main objective of the informatics/information science in the healthcare system is to manage the information that health personnel require to do their work efficiently and effectively3,6,7. One key area of the EHR application in the healthcare system is in the use of clinical patient care. EHR provides clinical functions which are health information and data, results management, order entry and support, and decision