Abstract
PURPOSE Realizing the benefits of adopting electronic health records (EHRs) in large measure depends heavily on clinicians and providers’ uptake and meaningful use of the technology. This study examines EHR adoption among family physicians using 2 different data sources, compares family physicians with other office-based medical specialists, assesses variation in EHR adoption among family physicians across states, and shows the possibility for data sharing among various medical boards and federal agencies in monitoring and guiding EHR adoption.
METHOD We undertook a secondary analysis of American Board of Family Medicine (ABFM) administrative data (2005–2011) and data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) (2001–2011).
RESULTS The EHR adoption rate by family physicians reached 68% nationally in 2011. NAMCS family physician adoption rates and ABFM adoption rates (2005–2011) were similar. Family physicians are adopting EHRs at a higher rate than other office-based physicians as a group; however, significant state-level variation exists, indicating geographical gaps in EHR adoption.
CONCLUSION Two independent data sets yielded convergent results, showing that adoption of EHRs by family physicians has doubled since 2005, exceeds other office-based physicians as a group, and is likely to surpass 80% by 2013. Adoption varies at a state level. Further monitoring of trends in EHR adoption and characterizing their capacities are important to achieve comprehensive data exchange necessary for better, affordable health care.
- electronic health record
- family physicians
- National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey
- American Board of Family Medicine
- Received for publication May 18, 2012.
- Revision received September 17, 2012.
- Accepted for publication October 3, 2012.
- © 2013 Annals of Family Medicine, Inc.
In this issue
Jump to section
Related Articles
Cited By...
- Clinical Quality Measure Exchange is Not Easy
- National Trends in Primary Care Visit Use and Practice Capabilities, 2008-2015
- A Randomized Trial of External Practice Support to Improve Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Primary Care
- The American Board of Family Medicine's Data Collection Method for Tracking Their Specialty
- Physician Multisite Practicing: Impact on Access to Care
- Increased Health Information Technology Adoption and Use Among Small Primary Care Physician Practices Over Time: A National Cohort Study
- The Application of Genomics in Diabetes: Barriers to Discovery and Implementation
- Perspectives in Primary Care: A Conceptual Framework and Path for Integrating Social Determinants of Health Into Primary Care Practice
- Physician Information Needs and Electronic Health Records (EHRs): Time to Reengineer the Clinic Note
- Health Information Technology Needs Help from Primary Care Researchers
- Only One Third of Family Physicians Can Estimate Their Patient Panel Size
- Big Data In Health Care: Using Analytics To Identify And Manage High-Risk And High-Cost Patients
- Community Size and Organization of Practice Predict Family Physician Recertification Success
- Factors Influencing Family Physician Adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHRs)
- In This Issue: How We Think and Feel Influences Patient Care