One of the patient care processes that apply in healthcare settings is associated with the maintenance of electronic physician records, otherwise termed as electronic health records (EHR). EHRs comprise a systematic collection of patient health information that is stored electronically in a digital format, such that it can be shared across various care settings. The range of data that may be included in electronic physician records includes lab test results, medical history, demographics, medication, immunization status, and billing information (Rajkomar et al., 2018). According to a national survey that was conducted among doctors in the US, 94% of the care providers reported that EHR increases the availability of records at the point of care. 88% of the survey participants established that electronic physician records maximize the clinical benefits of the practice and 75% acknowledged that EHRs increases the ability of practitioners to deliver better care services (Healthit.gov, 2019). Thus, electronic physician records are a vital component of patient care that facilities the betterment of the well-being of clients.
The impact of informatics on electronic physician records is characterized by the benefits that EHR has with regard to the execution of healthcare practitioner roles. For instance, the installation of EHRs in clinical settings provides physicians clinical decision support. The information about patients that doctors can access at the touch of a button when using EHRs, including lab results, medication, and allergies, increases their clinical decision-making capacity. Through the exploitation of the efficiencies of the Physician Order Entry (POE) function, which requires doctors to respond to computer-generated compliance reminders, the healthcare practitioners become better equipped to handle preventive care protocols (Evan, 2016). Therefore, informatics enhances the delivery of physician services through the betterment of physician decision-making abilities.
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According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) (n. d), using EHR in healthcare has transformed various functions in the industry, including quality, safety, and care efficiency. The electronic physician records have increased the accessibility of patient information among physicians, allowing practitioners to obtain new and past results of their patients’ health regardless of the multiple care settings that are involved. Additionally, EHRs facilitate the computerization of order entry and enhance the security of communication between physicians and patients. Furthermore, the automation of scheduling systems has revolutionized the process of booking appointments, all of which are factors that have enabled the maximization of care and enhanced the service delivery capacity of physicians.
However, regardless of the positive impact that the use of EHRs has had on doctor-client communication as evidenced by patient reports showing high levels of satisfaction with face to face communication and the quality of explanations provided by physicians, the electronic record maintenance systems impact patient-centeredness negatively. The latter is because in most cases, physicians that have access to EHRs concentrate more on the content on their monitors rather than their patients, resulting in the loss of physician-client rapport. Patients have complained that once doctors log into the record systems, they gaze on the screens while interacting with their patients. Screen gaze is reported to be inversely related to physician engagement in the delivery of satisfactory patient services (Alkureishi, 2016). Therefore, regardless of the numerous benefits that electronic physician records have on the service delivery capabilities of healthcare providers, they must be managed effectively to minimize the adversities that are associated with their use.
Based on the findings of a research conducted by Lau et al. (2012), there is a 51% chance that the implementation of EHRs enhances the practice of physicians and only a 19% possibility that it may have negative implications. Therefore, the possibility of adverse effects must not hinder the implementation of electronic physician records in care settings because the benefits thereof are increasingly dominant.
References
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Electronic Medical Record Systems | AHRQ National Resource Center; Health Information Technology: Best Practices Transforming Quality, Safety, and Efficiency. Retrieved 24 August 2019, from https://healthit.ahrq.gov/key-topics/electronic-medical-record-systems
Alkureishi, M. A., Lee, W. W., Lyons, M., Press, V. G., Imam, S., Nkansah-Amankra, A., ... & Arora, V. M. (2016). Impact of electronic medical record use on the patient-doctor relationship and communication: a systematic review. Journal of general internal medicine , 31 (5), 548-560.
Evans, R. S. (2016). Electronic health records: then, now, and in the future. Yearbook of medical informatics , 25 (S 01), S48-S61.
Healthit.gov. (2019). Improved Diagnostics & Patient Outcomes | HealthIT.gov. Retrieved 24 August 2019, from https://www.healthit.gov/topic/health-it-and-health-information-exchange-basics/improved-diagnostics-patient-outcomes
Lau, F., Price, M., Boyd, J., Partridge, C., Bell, H., & Raworth, R. (2012). Impact of electronic medical record on physician practice in office settings: a systematic review. BMC medical informatics and decision making , 12 (1), 10.
Rajkomar, A., Oren, E., Chen, K., Dai, A. M., Hajaj, N., Hardt, M., ... & Sundberg, P. (2018). Scalable and accurate deep learning with electronic health records. NPJ Digital Medicine , 1 (1), 18.
