Practice Technology

After initial spurt, electronic messaging usually levels off, study finds

Medical Economics is unveiling this exclusive report on the top 50 electronic health record (EHR) vendors in an effort to help physicians make purchasing decisions. Companies are listed in alphabetical order.

Medical Economics' exclusive survey gathers physician usability ratings of the top EHR systems in five key areas: quality of care, meaningful use, patient portal, technical support, and clinical support.

Thousands of physicians rated the usability of their systems including: quality of care, meaningful use, patient portal, technical support and clinical decision support.

Medical Economics exclusive interview with Karen B. DeSalvo, MD, MPH, MSc, the national coordinator for Health Information Technology of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

How to navigate the growing number of health-related apps and meet patient demand for more connected care.

While vendors have focused most of their development efforts on meaningful use and ICD-10 readiness, innovations are on the way to improve system functionality for physicians

Video visits, patient portals and other tech tools are helping to bridge the gap between physicians and their patients.

Use of a patient portal or secure electronic communications is an effective way to boost patient engagement and improve practice efficiency. Here's how to get started.

Sharing health data remains a major challenge for accountable care organizations, according to a new survey.

The Medical Group Management Association is calling on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to extend the October 1 reporting deadline for providers to attest to meaningful use.

By using direct engagement and promotion, primary care practices can match or potentially surpass patient portal engagement rates posted by large health systems, according to a new study published in the Annals of Family Medicine.

A year away from the October 2015 deadline for transitioning to the International Classification of Diseases-10th revision (ICD-10), physicians cannot assume another delay will happen, experts say. Now is the time to prepare in earnest.

The American Medical Association is calling on electronic health record (EHR) vendors to drastically improve the design and functionality of their systems, which have been a source of frustration for many of its members.

Fifty-six percent of physicians are already at Meaningful Use Stage 2 and 71% plan to reach Stage 3, but a majority don't think it increases productivity, according to a new survey by Deloitte.

The office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology issued a final rule Wednesday giving EHR vendors more flexibility with its testing and certification criteria

On September 9, Apple revealed the Apple Watch, saying it can help people lead healthier lives. It joins a growing list of new health innovations including Health and HealthKit, set launch in September.

Though once touted as time-savers, physicians in a recent survey reported losing an average of 48 minutes a day because of electronic health records (EHRs).

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has paid more than $24.8 billion in meaningful use incentive payments to providers and hospitals, according to a recent report.

Information about making the switch from ICD-9 to ICD-10 from CMS.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has announced that it will conduct three weeks of ICD-10 testing.

The key to persuading patients to use your portal is developing a strategy based on communication and education, physicians say.

As physicians and coders transition to ICD-10, several coding and documentation issues will need to be addressed related to complications of pregnancy.

EHR patient portals allow patients to view their lab results online, but a new study questions whether they'll be able to decipher them.

Practices must establish social media guidelines to protect patient health information and the reputations of its physicians.