On Friday, National Coordinator for Health IT David Blumenthal said the U.S. is behind several other countries in adopting health IT, MedPage Today reports (Walker, MedPage Today, 10/30).
Blumenthal spoke during a briefing in Washington, D.C., about efforts by the U.S. and other countries to invest in health IT (Zigmond, Modern Healthcare, 10/30).
Other Countries’ Efforts
In Denmark, patients can access details of their hospital stays, physician visits and medications by signing in to an online portal (MedPage Today, 10/30).
In Sweden, primary care documentation is 100% electronic, and 97% of hospitals use electronic health records, according to Sabine Koch, a professor of health informatics at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm.
Implementation Issues
Blumenthal said there have been several barriers to adopting health IT in the U.S., including:
Blumenthal said most of these challenges will be addressed by the 2009 economic stimulus package’s HITECH Act, which allocates $19 billion to improve health IT capabilities and encourage EHR adoption.
Health care providers who demonstrate “meaningful use” of certified EHRs can receive incentive payments through Medicaid and Medicare (MedPage Today, 10/30).
Source: iHealthBeat
If you have questions or need assistance regarding IT for your practice, please give us a call. We would love to help!
Comments are closed.
Copyright 2015 - Pulse Practice Solutions | 615.425.2719