A Doctor Pans Electronic Health Record Incentives

Does anyone care that this “stimulus” money is subject to the grossest abuses? That it will be misapplied? That most of it is being doled out to people who have already implemented these technologies and now are getting a little gloss on top? Does anyone care that our country is broke and this is just another program that is unsustainable, unnecessary, and incapable of producing its intended results. Is there any evidence that this is having an impact?

And third, perhaps most fundamentally, we are incenting the wrong thing. The EHR is not the end all be all technology to implement into practices across the country. One of the most thoughtful newer EHR companies puts this entire notion into perspective. ClearPractice, a subsidiary of Essence Health Group, list out 22 capabilities that are required to achieve the triple aim of lower costs, increased quality, and improved outcomes. The EHR is only ONE aspect of the requirements to achieve this. Double take on that – only One of Twenty Two core capabilities – less than 5%.

This is Dr. Scott Shreeve at The Health Care Blog.