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June 26th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda MONDAY, June 25 (HealthDay News) — Malpractice claims dipped
dramatically among Massachusetts physicians after they began using
electronic medical records, according to new research, although it’s not
clear whether the record-keeping was connected to the decline in
claims.
Despite its limitations, however, the research provides more evidence
that electronic health records “improve quality and safety and, as a
result, prevent adverse events and reduce the risk of malpractice claims,”
said study co-author Dr. Steven Simon, an associate professor with Harvard
Medical School and an internist with VA Boston Healthcare System.
Electronic medical records allow physicians to use computers to track
patients instead of relying on paper files. Supporters of electronic
records say they cut down on errors by making it easier for doctors to
spot problems such as medication conflicts and allergies. They can also
make it easier for doctors to communicate with patients and with other
physicians.
The medical world hasn’t quickly embraced electronic records, in part
because of the cost of switching from paper. Email communications, in
particular, appear rare: In 2010, a HealthDay/Harris Interactive poll
found that fewer than 1 in 10 adults used email to communicate with their
physician.
And some physicians are skeptical of electronic health records, saying
they could lead to “unintended consequences” that create new kinds of
errors and problems for patients, Simon said.
In the new study, researchers tracked malpractice cases for 275 physicians
who were surveyed in 2005 and 2007. Of those, 33 were targeted by
malpractice claims. Forty-nine claims related to alleged medical
malpractice that took place before the physicians adopted electronic
health records, and two occurred after.
The researchers estimate that medical malpractice claims were about 84
percent less likely after electronic medical records were put into place.
The study says factors other than electronic health records could account
for the difference in claims. Physicians who used the records, for
example, could be “early adopters” whose style of medicine was less likely
to spawn malpractice claims. Also, Massachusetts made major changes to the
state’s health care system in 2006.
And, the researchers pointed out in their letter published in the June
25 online edition of Archives of Internal Medicine, the study was
limited to only those doctors in Massachusetts who were affiliated with
Harvard Medical School.
Nevertheless, Tom Baker, a professor of law and health sciences at
University of Pennsylvania Law School, said the study makes sense and
“alleviates concerns that the use of electronic health records could lead
to increased medical malpractice risk.”
Some observers have feared that the ease of reviewing electronic health
records would make it easier to find errors, he added.
“This research suggests that, rather than increasing
medical malpractice risk, adopting electronic health records reduces that
risk,” he said.
More information
For more on health records, try the U.S. National Library of
Medicine.
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