A key provision of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 mandated that, as of Jan. 1, 2014, all public and private healthcare providers must adopt “meaningful use” of electronic medical records in order to maintain their existing Medicaid and Medicare reimbursement levels. And, as Martha Stewart might say, “that’s a good thing.”
This new way of recording, storing and protecting your medical data not only increases accuracy and offers life-saving possibilities but it can put your records at your fingertips.
Certainly that’s true for patients at Bristol Hospital, which, on Wednesday, announced a new “portal” allowing patients to access their electronic medical records from virtually anywhere.
Effective Monday, patients can log on and see information about their scheduled visits and prescribed medications, look at data from visits dating as far back as July, 2011 and make payments online.
But, even more important than the convenience this system brings is the life-saving potential that comes with electronic records.
According to HealthIT.gov, this new technology helps providers identify and work with patients to manage specific risk factors. For example, it keeps a record of a patient’s medications or allergies and automatically checks for problems whenever a new medication is prescribed, alerting the clinician to potential conflicts. (One community hospital saw a 60 decrease in near-miss medication events after it implemented an electronic system.)
And it increases the efficiency of those fleeting moments with your doctor.
“I can quickly and easily pull up test results in the exam room to review with my patients,” says Sandhya Pruthi, M.D., of Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. “I also can verify when they had past exams or procedures. I can even show them results of their imaging tests on the screen.”
If your health problem requires input from doctors in different locations, specialists can simultaneously view a patient’s medical record on their computers and get up-to-the-minute information on test results and other doctors’ recommendations, according to the Mayo Clinic.
And the benefits extend to your local drug stores where pharmacists no longer have to struggle with a doctor’s handwriting. Moreover, state-run electronic data bases are one of the most promising resources available to help clinicians identify, intervene, and curb prescription drug abuse, including “doctor shopping.”
The bottom line: Computers serve us both in the workplace and through social media. Now they hold the potential to save our lives.
