Of the physicians who have adopted electronic health record systems, only about one-third say that the technology has improved care quality, according to a survey by the Physicians Foundation, FierceEMR reports (Hirsch, FierceEMR, 9/25).
About the Survey
The survey was emailed to more than 630,000 physicians -- or about 84% of active doctors -- between March and June.
Altogether, 13,575 physicians responded to the 48-question survey, which aimed to assess doctors' morale, their perspectives on health IT and other topics (Physicians Foundation survey, 10/1).
Health IT-Related Survey Findings
The survey found that 69.5% of respondents said they had implemented an EHR system. Of those physicians:
- 32.9% said that their EHR system has improved care quality;
- 18.5% said that their EHR system has not improved care quality and that they do not anticipate it to do so;
- 13.4% said that their EHR system has not yet improved care quality but that they expected it to do so in the future (FierceEMR, 9/25);
- 12.9% said that their EHR system has had no effect on care quality;
- 10.4% said that their EHR system has decreased care quality and that they do not expect it to eventually increase care quality;
- 7.9% said that their EHR system might improve care quality but that it was not worth the investment; and
- 4% said that their EHR system has decreased care quality but that they expect it to eventually increase care quality.
The survey asked all respondents how they would rate EHR implementation as a solution to the health care system's cost and access challenges. It found that:
- 15.9% said they felt very positive about the technology;
- 25.6% said they felt somewhat positive about the technology;
- 25.6% said they felt neither positive nor negative about the technology;
- 18% said they felt somewhat negative about the technology; and
- 14.9% said they felt very negative about the technology (Physicians Foundation survey, 10/1).
The survey also found that more than 47% of respondents said they were "significantly concerned" that EHR systems posed a risk to patient privacy.
In addition, the survey found that:
- Nearly 16% of respondents said they had delayed health IT implementation because of concerns about the Medicare fee schedule system; and
- 15% of respondents said they would delay health IT implementation if Medicare fees were reduced by 10% or more (FierceEMR, 9/25).