In a new study published by the Journal of General Internal Medicine (JGIM), providers’ use of EHRs was shown to lead to significantly higher care quality scores for certain health conditions compared to scores from providers using paper records. The study looked at the association between EHRs and ambulatory quality in a community-based setting, finding that EHR use led to:
- Increased appropriate hemoglobin A1c testing for patients with diabetes;
- Greater provider success in meeting quality measures for breast cancer screening;
- More providers meeting quality measures for chlamydia screening; and
- Increased number of providers meeting quality measures for colorectal cancer screening.
The study examined 2008 data, and looked at 262 physicians using paper charts and 204 physicians using EHRs, including information from 74,618 patients.
Access the study online: Electronic Health Records and Ambulatory Quality of Care, Journal of General Internal Medicine