EHR interoperability, population health management, and data integration between health IT systems remain among the top challenges of EHR users, says a new Software Advice report, but belief in the ability of EHRs to add effective patient safety, population health management, and care coordination features to the workflow remains high. Three-quarters of respondents indicated that they were somewhat or very satisfied with their electronic health records systems, and more than a quarter are planning to increase their investments in health IT to take advantage of more advanced features and improved health information exchange.
When it comes to health IT spending, the patient portal is at the top of the list. More than a quarter plan to boost their patient engagement capabilities in the near future, and only slightly fewer are interested in improving health information exchange. Lab integration and patient scheduling are also attracting interest, while around 20% anticipate increasing their spending on business intelligence systems, suggesting an overall push for better systems integration that will facilitate the flow of healthcare data internally and across the care continuum.
But the process won’t be an easy one, according to the majority of respondents to the poll. Fifty-six percent said that integration with other health IT and data systems was the number one challenge of adopting and optimizing an EHR, and the tasks are complicated by frustrating and poorly delivered features within the software.
More than 25% thought their EHR systems poorly delivered the ability to improve patient engagement, and nearly as many were disenchanted with trying to track outcomes with the EHR. Population health management features and preventative care reminders were also high on the list of provider complaints, while others found it difficult to coordinate with other providers. With just about half of participants adding that customization of EHR systems presented a major challenge, the survey indicates that providers may need to invest more time in learning how to optimize their EHR systems to meet their population health, data analytics, and patient care goals.
On the positive side, providers generally find it easy to access necessary data and are pleased with the quantity and legibility of patient records. Patient safety features like drug interaction alerts and critical lab value alerts also garnered approval from about 75% of respondents, despite ongoing worries about the impact of an overwhelming number of alerts, alarms, and flags that often cause providers to ignore important reminders.
For informaticists and health information managers, the findings reveal significant opportunities for some hands-on retooling of the way EHR systems are implemented. Providers must work to establish their expectations when it comes to the health IT infrastructure, and then hire qualified experts to help them achieve their goals. Whether it’s starting to dive into population health management or ensuring that medication reconciliation is performed effectively upon all transitions of care, the EHR can be a valuable tool in the process of transforming healthcare into an industry that leverages clinical data to provide superior patient care – but only if providers learn how to use, adjust, and optimize them first.
