Physicians who use electronic health records to review portal images had better compliance with image review policies than physicians who reviewed images manually, according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology, CMIO reports (Godt, CMIO, 7/6).
For the study, researchers examined physician reviews of 411 portal images. About half of the reviews were conducted with through an EHR, while the other half were conducted manually using radiographic film or printouts.
Study Findings
According to the study, 1% of the images reviewed through an EHR incurred compliance violations, such as unsigned films or missing review dates. In comparison, 25% of the images that were reviewed manually incurred compliance violations.
The researchers wrote, "The only violation incurred with checking portal images on [an EHR] was having images checked after more than one business day."
They noted that EHRs helped physicians check portal images remotely, which lead to timelier reviews (Bowman, FierceEMR, 7/3).
Researchers Comment on Findings
The researchers wrote, "Given this study's findings, in accordance with a nationwide push for transitioning to [EHRs], reviewing portal images via an [EHR] should be standard of care" (CMIO, 7/6).