A physican's thoughts on Electronic Medical Records

[Lulu54]

Do your medical providers use electronic medical records (EMR)?  About half of my doctors do, and I find it interesting but also somewhat worrisome that with a click of the mouse each wired provider can see my list of diagnosis and treatments. I've also wondered if it tells them enough to effectively treat my medical problems.  Today's summary of medical blogs from kevinmd.com includes one that might be of interest to you as well.  

http://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2012/05/electronic-records-dont-stories-cognitive-sense.html

The responses this blog got from other physicians also makes for some good reading and insight into how doctors feel about EMR.

To me, this reinforces the need to tell our history over and over, and with details, so the doctors can know what is going on before determining our course of treatment.  What do you think?

[kwarendorf]

It seems to me that blaming EMR for the lack of connection to patients is blame shifting. As a software project manager I'm biased. We cannot entirely protect the users from themselves.

During my dx process I collected, and traveled with, a growing paper file of test results. Each doc I saw was presented with a copy. The docs I liked didn't open the file until after we had chatted for a bit. The docs that I didn't like went right into the file.

At some point your docs will need access to all of your medical information. Having it in an easily accessible electronic format doesn't determine how they will use it.

Kyle

[SarahL2491]

none of mine use them yet.  they use the laptop computers for notes, but think it just goes into their system.  I think I would like it

[supermum_ms]

Ummm in Australia, electronic medical records is what the government is trying to introduce, not sure that it's got the ok or not because they were only talking about it again a few months ago. Personally, not only from my perspective but also a few others that i know, having one dr's misdiagnoses on our records to hound us for ever, is not in my humble opinion a good thing.

How does is work for some of the things that have happened to me, dx with a condition that no tests back up, I doubt dr's go looking at the records and go through all the test results to see if the dx-ing dr was correct, I actually seriously doubt the dx-ing dr even did that. lol Then again i look at the things that have happened to my mum, and wonder if someone had had to run through her medical file, then maybe some of the stuff ups wouldn't of happened. maybe?

hmmm one was picked up by a nurse entering the nights written reports into their hospital system and she picked up the dr's mistake, he'd dx back issues and the nurse noticed her test results dx a kidney infection. Funny mum kept telling the dr it was her kidney playing up again, patient story should of been enough but he didn't bother to listen to the patient, so what happens in that sort of senarios?

I'm sort of a bit negative for anything that could potentionally disconnect dr's from patients, valid tools sound good but there is always going to be issues with technology taking over the human necessity.

Cheers..........JJ