Electronic prescribing increasing in popularity
October 15th 2009More than 140,000 (23 percent) of all office-based physicians, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants in the U.S. are now using electronic prescribing, according to Surescripts. At the current pace, the company projects, the total number of health care professionals prescribing medication electronically via its network this year will more than double from the 74,000 active electronic prescribers who used it at the end of last year.
First telehealth provider launches on the Google Health platform
October 15th 2009Users of Google Health who have scheduled telehealth consultations with physicians or mental health therapists via MDLiveCare will be able to share medical records with their doctors before the appointments and receive records from the doctors after the appointments, thanks to a new collaboration between the two companies.
Survey reveals attitudes about health-care information technology
October 15th 2009Health-care information technology (HIT) has the potential to cut costs, increase access and improve quality in the U.S. health care system, according to results of a Harris Interactive survey of a nationwide sample of 2,200 adults aged at least 18 years commissioned by the Career College Association and TechAmerica.
Electronic alerts do not necessarily ensure timely follow-up
October 15th 2009Abnormal results on outpatient imaging tests sometimes may not receive timely follow-up even when clinicians receive and read results in an advanced, integrated electronic medical record system, according to a report in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
Web initiative aims to decrease time, expense of office visit paperwork
October 15th 2009A new Web initiative to be launched in Ohio by several health plans is designed to benefit patients and practices by reducing the time, effort, and expense associated with the paperwork required for office visits.