Electronic health record adoption at larger, well-known, older hospitals in densely populated areas can help spur EHR adoption at neighboring facilities, according to a recent study published in the journal Management Science, United Press International reports.
For the study, a team of researchers used a "social contagion" model to assess EHR adoption among nearly 4,000 U.S. hospitals across a 20-year period (United Press International, 8/18).
Researchers found that a hospital's size, age and geographic characteristics can affect its likelihood of influencing EHR adoption among neighboring facilities.
They also noted that a hospital's "celebrity status" could make it more likely to spur EHR implementation among its neighbors.
According to the study authors, the results suggest that health officials could target specific types of facilities with health IT initiatives to accelerate the rate of EHR adoption in a particular geographic region (Byers, CMIO, 8/19).