21 December 2009

Doctors Approve Of Electronic Records, But Privacy Still A Concern

USA Today


U.S. physicians support the use of electronic medical records, but widespread concerns exist about privacy problems, two new studies show.

One study of more than 1,000 family practice and specialist doctors in Massachusetts found that 86% believed electronic health information exchange (HIE) would improve patient quality of care, 70% thought it would reduce costs and 76% said it would save time.

However, 16% said they were "very concerned" about possible privacy breaches, especially children's doctors, while a further 55% were "somewhat concerned." The study also found that none of the doctors wanted to pay the suggested $150 monthly fee for HIE and about half said they weren't willing to pay any fee.

The second study, which included 56 psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses and therapists at an academic medical center, found that most believed electronic health records healthcare pacs records were clearer and more complete than paper records, but not necessarily more factual.

However, 63% said they were less willing to record highly confidential information in a patient's electronic health record than on a paper record. And 83% said if they were a patient, they wouldn't want their mental health records to be routinely accessed by other health-care providers.

"Designers of future task management software systems will need to enhance electronic file security and simultaneously maintain legitimate accessibility in order to preserve confidence in psychiatric and other [electronic health record] systems," the researchers concluded.

Both studies are published in the January issue of the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association.

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