You can't teach an old dog new tricks, which is why a lot of doctors are still hesitant about switching from their paper record keeping to the modern way of electronic health records. Most doctors would like to stick to their old and familiar charts, file folders and stacks of paper.
However, the effectiveness of electronic health records is being recognized. As more and more healthcare institutions, hospitals and clinics make the move to being digitized, some are still reluctant to try the benefits of electronic health records.
One major concern of doctors in switching to this digital system is the privacy of electronic health records. The industry of electronic health records has addressed this by installing security measures such as personal identifiers to restrict access to the patient's records. Apart from that, the debate of electronic health records and their expensive cost to implement remains a hot topic.
The accuracy of electronic health records is also being questioned. Since the system is still in its adolescent age, the consortium groups hired by the government to are still remedying this concern. Part of this project is identifying who the key people are in charge of encoding the data into the system. The efficiency of electronic health records to cut cost in the administrative department is another advantage that this system boasts of.
Not only that. The benefit of electronic health records in fast information retrieval is assured. Transparency of electronic health records with regards to the use and allocation of resources like medicines can be closely monitored. This will save money for the administration and help divert the medicines to those who need it the most. These are but some of the pro arguments that loyal advocates of electronic health records say.
But for every positive there is a negative. The disadvantages of electronic health records are:
* It decreases productivity - implementation of new systems come off slow in the beginning but are likely to change once the people have gotten used to it.
* A lot of training is required - a new system will require training more people.
* It's too expensive to implement - the equipment alone will cost thousands.
* There is a possibility of identity theft - if security of the information is not solved, a patient's medical records stolen by anyone who is familiar with the software.
* The permanence of electronic health records is not assured - the threat of a computer virus can easily erase years of research and personal medical information.
All of the above are valid argument, which is why software developers of electronic health records quickly consider all these points as the constantly tweak and improve their products.
The real challenge of electronic health records is the future of integration. Because the current electronic health record systems in various hospitals and healthcare institutions differ from each network, integration is a major problem. The incompatibility of the software presents as a barrier to effectively share patient records in cases like a hospital transfers.
Delivery of the patients' files is still the only way to provide that information to a colleague, method that is slow and has no means of security unless the files are delivered in a number-locked briefcase.
Despite the reluctance of some physicians in fully adopting electronic health records, change is inevitable. To progress mean to move forward and the electronic health record system gives the medical industry a glimpse of the paperless management of records.