All posts by EHR Association

Digital Health Equity: Harnessing Design Systems to Advance EHR Accessibility 

By Jennifer Sagerian (MEDITECH), Member, EHR Association User Experience Workgroup

For many, the pandemic shed light on issues related to web accessibility. Ninety percent of US adults said the internet was “essential” during the pandemic yet many people with disabilities were at a disadvantage; unable to schedule vaccines, communicate with their providers, and schedule appointments. Since then, web accessibility has become a high-priority social determinant of health (SDOH) – and a fundamental human right.  

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by EHR Association on June 25, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Usability and Clinician Experience
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Posted by EHR Association on June 25, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/06/25/digital-health-equity-harnessing-design-systems-to-advance-ehr-accessibility/

Success of ONC’s Health IT Strategic Plan Rests on Realistic Expectations, Regulatory Timelines

By Stephanie Jamison (Greenway Health), Chair, and William Hayes, M.D. (Trubridge), Vice Chair, EHR Association

With its Draft 2024-2030 Federal Health IT Strategic Plan, ONC seeks to enhance individual and community health through improved healthcare experiences, advanced research and innovation, and integrated health data systems – important goals the EHR Association finds commendable provided the path taken to achieve them is paved with realistic expectations and timelines for regulations targeting them.

In many ways, the mission and vision laid out by ONC in its strategic plan echoes the objectives of our member companies; namely, advancing the quality and efficiency of care through innovative, interoperable health IT adoption and use. However, our enthusiastic support is tempered by concerns over the potential for too-aggressive compliance timelines and expectations that are beyond the reach of EHR and other health IT developers and the provider organizations utilizing these tools – concerns we shared in our response to ONC’s call for feedback on the Draft Federal Health IT Strategic Plan. 

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by EHR Association on May 30, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Health IT Regulation, Health IT Standards
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Posted by EHR Association on May 30, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/05/30/success-of-oncs-health-it-strategic-plan-rests-on-realistic-expectations-regulatory-timelines/

Recommendations for Capturing Social Determinants

By Janet Campbell (Epic), Chair, EHR Association Social Determinants of Health & Health Equity Task Force

A patient’s risk within social determinant of health (SDOH) domains is typically assessed by social care or healthcare professionals through either conversation or use of standard screening questionnaires or validated testing instruments. The challenge, however, is a lack of consensus on which specific domains should be assessed for patients, and how they should be assessed.

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by EHR Association on May 14, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in SDOH
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Posted by EHR Association on May 14, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/05/14/recommendations-for-capturing-social-determinants/

States Should Look to TEFCA when Regulating Data Exchange

By Josh Mast (Oracle Health), Chair, EHR Association Public Policy Leadership Workgroup

As the 21st Century Cures Act transitions from policy to practice, numerous states are looking at their interoperability and privacy regulations with an eye toward enacting laws governing healthcare and health IT utilization. This includes establishing state health data utilities (HDUs), health information exchanges (HIEs), and data sharing agreements.

The EHR Association supports states’ ability to gather information for public health, population health, and other purposes. However, a patchwork regulatory approach could create unintended roadblocks to the secure national exchange of and access to critical health information.

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by EHR Association on April 30, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Health IT Regulation
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Posted by EHR Association on April 30, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/04/30/states-should-look-to-tefca-when-regulating-data-exchange/

Advocating for Inclusive Disincentives to Support Broader Information Sharing

By Leigh Burchell (Altera Digital Health), Vice Chair, EHR Association Information Blocking Compliance Task Force

The EHR Association submitted feedback to the Office of the National Coordinator’s proposed rule for Health Information Technology (ONC) concerning the Establishment of Disincentives for Health Care Providers That Have Committed Information Blocking. This proposed rule aims to establish disincentives for healthcare providers found guilty of information blocking. The Association’s comments, while reinforcing our commitment to improving information sharing, also highlight the need for a more inclusive approach to disincentives that could motivate a wider range of healthcare providers to embrace information sharing best practices.

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by EHR Association on March 29, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Health IT Regulation, Information Blocking
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Posted by EHR Association on March 29, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/03/29/advocating-for-inclusive-disincentives-to-support-broader-information-sharing/

Inclusive EHR Design Starts with Understanding the Disability Spectrum

By Tammy Coutts (MEDITECH), Vice Chair of the EHR Association User Experience Work Group, and Libby Eddings (Oracle Health), Member of the User Experience Work Group

Disability isn’t a lightbulb that switches on and off. Nor do symptoms travel in a straight line. In fact, the only certainty about disabilities is they will, at some point, impact nearly everyone. 

This is why inclusive EHR design must start from a point of understanding that ability and disability exist on a spectrum. Doing so is the first step to fully eliminating accessibility barriers and empowering healthcare professionals and patients alike to utilize these tools to their fullest extent.

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by EHR Association on March 18, 2024  •  Permalink
Posted in Usability and Clinician Experience
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Posted by EHR Association on March 18, 2024

https://ehrablog.org/2024/03/18/inclusive-ehr-design-starts-with-understanding-the-disability-spectrum/

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