The Rheumatologist
COVID-19 News
  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed
  • Home
  • Conditions
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis
    • SLE (Lupus)
    • Crystal Arthritis
      • Gout Resource Center
    • Spondyloarthritis
    • Osteoarthritis
    • Soft Tissue Pain
    • Scleroderma
    • Vasculitis
    • Systemic Inflammatory Syndromes
    • Guidelines
  • Resource Centers
    • Ankylosing Spondylitis Resource Center
    • Gout Resource Center
    • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
    • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
  • Drug Updates
    • Biologics & Biosimilars
    • DMARDs & Immunosuppressives
    • Topical Drugs
    • Analgesics
    • Safety
    • Pharma Co. News
  • Professional Topics
    • Ethics
    • Legal
    • Legislation & Advocacy
    • Career Development
      • Certification
      • Education & Training
    • Awards
    • Profiles
    • President’s Perspective
    • Rheuminations
  • Practice Management
    • Billing/Coding
    • Quality Assurance/Improvement
    • Workforce
    • Facility
    • Patient Perspective
    • Electronic Health Records
    • Apps
    • Information Technology
    • From the College
    • Multimedia
      • Audio
      • Video
  • Resources
    • Issue Archives
    • ACR Convergence
      • Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Resource Center
      • Rheumatoid Arthritis Resource Center
      • Gout Resource Center
      • Abstracts
      • Meeting Reports
      • ACR Convergence Home
    • American College of Rheumatology
    • ACR ExamRheum
    • Research Reviews
    • ACR Journals
      • Arthritis & Rheumatology
      • Arthritis Care & Research
      • ACR Open Rheumatology
    • Rheumatology Image Library
    • Treatment Guidelines
    • Rheumatology Research Foundation
    • Events
  • About Us
    • Mission/Vision
    • Meet the Authors
    • Meet the Editors
    • Contribute to The Rheumatologist
    • Subscription
    • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Search
You are here: Home / Articles / Electronic Medical Records Have Mixed Impact on Quality, Quantity of Healthcare

Electronic Medical Records Have Mixed Impact on Quality, Quantity of Healthcare

January 17, 2017 • By David S. Knapp, MD, FACR

  • Tweet
  • Email
Print-Friendly Version / Save PDF

The widespread implementation of electronic medical records (EMRs) and electronic health records (EHRs) has significantly changed the quality and quantity of healthcare for both the better and the worse. The digitalization of medical records provides comprehensive documentation of all events and actions associated with an individual’s medical care. Likewise, legibility, accountability and credibility are greatly improved by access to all information pertinent to a patient’s healthcare.

You Might Also Like
  • ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Experts discuss the process of becoming “meaningful users” of electronic medical records
  • What’s In A Note?: The Use of Electronic Health Records
  • ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Experts discuss the process of becoming “meaningful users” of electronic medical records
Explore This Issue
January 2017

Under the current fee-for-service reimbursement system (which is soon to be replaced by a fee-for-value reimbursement system), the EMR also acts like a giant cash register that tracks the quality and quantity of medical services provided that are documented to be medically necessary in order to reduce waste, fraud and abuse and maximize provider accountability and reimbursement for medical services.

ad goes here:advert-1
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

So what’s not to love? Plenty!

The Bad & the Ugly

The sheer volume of documentation that is displayed all at one time may overwhelm the healthcare provider, who can get distracted in locating the information he needs in a sea of medical documentation that the provider must somehow confirm has been reviewed. Ultimately, the healthcare provider is taking care of the EHR demands as much as the patient, if not more.

ad goes here:advert-2
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Thoughtful consideration of a patient’s concerns and complaints, along with formulation of a diagnosis and treatment plan (not to mention examination), is undermined by the inflexible demands of the EHR program, which will not progress to the next task until all tasks required are completed. What used to be a one- or two-page succinct document describing an office visit has morphed into a 6–10-page regurgitation of previous medical records that may or may not be relevant to current healthcare needs (also known as note bloat).

Pressure to Diagnose

In order to facilitate care, the healthcare provider is required to provide a diagnosis to proceed with permission for further diagnostic and therapeutic efforts, regardless of certainty that the diagnostic label is accurate and correct. The key to the kingdom of both therapy and payment is the diagnostic label, which, hopefully, is accurate and reflects the correct diagnosis.

A medical diagnosis involves the identification of the nature and cause of illness symptoms and the determination of the cause of an associated disease process. Sometimes, symptoms of illness are not associated with a defined disease process, and sometimes, a disease process is silent and not associated with illness symptoms.

ad goes here:advert-3
ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Illness is how a patient feels (subjectively reported), and disease is the identification of abnormal body tissue and/or function that can be measured directly by examination or indirectly by diagnostic studies.

Pages: 1 2 3 4 | Single Page

Filed Under: Practice Management, Technology Tagged With: digital, Documentation, efficiency, electronic health record, electronic medical record, fee-for-service, impact, patient care, physician, Practice Management, Quality, rheumatologist, rheumatology, Safety, valueIssue: January 2017

You Might Also Like:
  • ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Experts discuss the process of becoming “meaningful users” of electronic medical records
  • What’s In A Note?: The Use of Electronic Health Records
  • ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: Experts discuss the process of becoming “meaningful users” of electronic medical records
  • Are Electronic Health Records a Plague or Panacea?

American College of Rheumatology

Visit the official website for the American College of Rheumatology.

Visit the ACR »

Meeting Abstracts

Browse and search abstracts from the ACR Convergence and ACR/ARP Annual Meetings going back to 2012.

Visit the Abstracts site »

Simple Tasks

Learn more about the ACR’s public awareness campaign and how you can get involved. Help increase visibility of rheumatic diseases and decrease the number of people left untreated.

Visit the Simple Tasks site »

The Rheumatologist newsmagazine reports on issues and trends in the management and treatment of rheumatic diseases. The Rheumatologist reaches 11,500 rheumatologists, internists, orthopedic surgeons, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurses, and other healthcare professionals who practice, research, or teach in the field of rheumatology.

About Us / Contact Us / Advertise / Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

  • Connect with us:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Feed

Copyright © 2006–2021 American College of Rheumatology. All rights reserved.

ISSN 1931-3268 (print)
ISSN 1931-3209 (online)

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.
This site uses cookies: Find out more.