November 2nd, 2008
The health IT archipelago
How is health care technology in the U.S. like the Philippines? (This Philippine map appeared in a CNN story back in 1996.)
It’s an archipelago, islands of technology, often unconnected, linked by ferry lines of bureaucracy and paper.
That’s my conclusion after reading the final report of the Healthcare Information and Management System Society (HIMSS) Analytics group. It’s in line with results from an earlier survey published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
About one-third of respondents said some components of a computerized system were in place at their locations. HIMSS Analytics said there was “purchasing hesitation,” with just 13% saying they planned to buy an EMR system in the next year.
There is no dominant vendor in the market, the survey added, the most common application is basic charting, but three-quarters use computers to get paid.
Why? Cost and “lack of interest,” the report said.
It’s worse if you’re looking to get rid of those scribbled prescriptions. Only one practice in four uses e-prescribing, and most who don’t have no plans to buy it.
My best guess as to this state of affairs is the old, “What’s in it for me?” And it’s a valid objection.
Doctors are being told to pay for automation, but the benefits are not going to their own bottom lines. They’re going to insurance companies or hospital groups. Thus those doctors who do automate do so under pressure from such groups.
Will government pressure accelerate the trend? Only if it comes with more carrot than stick.
Dana Blankenhorn has been a business journalist since 1978, and has covered technology since 1982. He launched the Interactive Age Daily, the first daily coverage of the Internet to launch with a magazine, in September 1994. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.
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