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Health Information Technology in the United States, 2008
Where We Stand
Published: June 2008
Health information technology (HIT) has the potential to revolutionize the delivery of health care. This report considers in particular the growth of electronic health records—a common example of HIT—and how it might affect the cost and quality of health care.
Health information technology (HIT) refers to a variety of electronic methods used to manage information about people's health and health care. This report expands on the findings of an earlier report—Health Information Technology in the United States—from 2006 that examined the barriers to widespread HIT adoption and the challenges faced in accurately measuring it. The authors provide new survey data from general physicians and from those serving vulnerable populations, while exploring methods to evaluate the effects of HIT on cost and quality of health care. The chapters of the report focus on a range of topics that include an economic analysis of HIT, the state of HIT internationally, and patients' experiences with electronic health records (EHR) and personal health records.
Key Findings:
- 13 percent more physicians are using EHR since 2006;
- there is no significant association between EHR use and quality of care;
- providers who serve vulnerable populations are no less likely to provide HIT enhanced care than other providers; and
- several developed nations are approaching universal implementation of EHR systems.
The type of data generated by HIT and EHR can help providers better understand disparities in health care quality and may improve the patient experience and medical outcomes.
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Recommended
- Public Health Agencies To Explore Use of Information Technology To Improve Health (News releases)
- Electronic Health Records in Ambulatory Care (Journal articles)
- Clinical Information Technologies and Inpatient Outcomes (Journal articles)
- Financial Incentives, Quality Improvement Programs, and the Adoption of Clinical Information Technology (Journal articles)
- Clinical Information Technology Capabilities in Four U.S. Hospitals: Testing a New Structural Performance Measure (Journal articles)
- Clinical Information Technology Gaps Persist Among Physicians: Issue Brief No. 106 (Issue and policy briefs)
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Listed below is one grant that supported this project.
| Grant | Awarded to | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Measuring the adoption of health information technology in the United States to reduce health care disparities and improve health care quality: 2007 |
General Hospital Corporation-Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, MA) ID#: 63431 David Blumenthal, M.D., M.P.P. 617-726-5212 david.blumenthal@hhs.gov Catherine M. DesRoches, Ph.D. 617-724-6958 cdesroches@partners.org |
Actual award: $663,706 April 2008 to December 2009 |
RWJF may have supported this project with other grants that are not listed.
Public Health Agencies To Explore Use of Information Technology To Improve Health
Publication date:
Dec 14, 2005
Summary:
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) announced new grants today to support the participation of state and local public health agencies in health information exchanges.The new program, InformationLinks, is designed to accelerate the innovative and...
Electronic Health Records in Ambulatory Care
By:
DesRoches CM, Campbell EG, Rao S, Donelan K, Ferris TG, Jha A, Kaushal R, Levy DE, Rosenbaum S, Shields AE and Blumenthal D
Publication date:
July 03, 2008
Summary:
Small numbers of physicians use electronic records in the United States, and physicians in large practices are more likely to adopt such systems. The authors of this study conducted a national survey of 2,758 physicians to determine proportion of physicians using...
Clinical Information Technologies and Inpatient Outcomes
By:
Amarasingham R, Plantinga L, Diener-West M, Gaskin DJ and Powe NR
Publication date:
January 26, 2009
Summary:
This article examines how information technology in hospitals influences both clinical and financial outcomes. There is little research on the effect of information technology on hospitals on a large scale.
Financial Incentives, Quality Improvement Programs, and the Adoption of Clinical Information Technology
By:
Robinson JC, Casalino LP, Gillies R, Rittenhouse DR, Shortell SS and Fernandes-Taylor S
Publication date:
April 2009
Summary:
Various factors influence the adoption of clinical information technology in health service organizations. More than 500 medical groups and independent practice associations participated in this study. Detailed tabulations present findings related to a broad range...
Clinical Information Technology Capabilities in Four U.S. Hospitals: Testing a New Structural Performance Measure
By:
Amarasingham R, Diener-West M,, Weiner M, Lehmann H, Herbers JE and Powe NR
Publication date:
March 2006
Summary:
This article examined the development of an instrument that assessed the automation and usability of clinical information technologies (CIT) in hospitals. Test records or notes being kept electronically indicated automation. Usability referred to perceptions of the...
Clinical Information Technology Gaps Persist Among Physicians: Issue Brief No. 106
By:
Grossman JM and Reed MC
Publication date:
November 2006
Summary:
Physicians in smaller practices continue to lag well behind physicians in larger practices in reporting the availability of clinical information technology (IT) in their offices, according to a new national study from the Center for Studying Health System Change...
Connecting for Health: Accelerating the Effective Use of Information Technology in Health Care
Publication date:
December 02, 2008
Summary:
Connecting for Health works with more than 100 collaborators from government, health care, industry and consumer groups to establish policy guidelines and technical solutions to pave the way for nationwide electronic health information exchange.
Health Information Technology in the United States: Executive Summary
By:
The Institute for Health Policy
Publication date:
Oct 10, 2006
Summary:
The report, a joint project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the federal government's National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, provides a look at how doctors and hospitals are using information systems to drive improvements in quality.
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