Electronic Health Records Technology: Policies and Realities

Abstract

This chapter begins with a succinct review of the history of electronic health records (EHRs) in the U.S., including recent efforts by the federal government to encourage the use of them through their Meaningful Use program. It then discusses the low participation in this program by mental health providers and the reasons for the general lack of acceptance of EHRs by them. In fact, in 2012 only 7.1% of psychiatrists participated in the Meaningful Use program. The chapter next proceeds to discuss various efforts to increase the use of EHRs in the mental health field, including those by the American Psychiatric Association, the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the HL7 organization. The second part of the chapter provides in depth guidelines to selecting and implementing an EHR, beginning with making the decision whether to actually get one. Once the decision is made to do so, the chapter talks in great detail about the preparation process prior to the selection, followed by the steps involved in the actual selection and implementation processes. The chapter closes with a renewed emphasis on the need to do a thorough job prior to the implementation so as to avoid many problems after the EHR goes live, as well as the importance of including the ultimate users of the EHR in the entire selection and implementation processes.