Physician use of HIT in hospitals linked to fewer deaths and complications, l...( New York NY January 26 2009A study ...),Health

New York, NY, January 26, 2009A study published today in the Archives of Internal Medicine, finds that when physicians in hospitals use health information technology (health IT) to its full potential there are fewer deaths, fewer complications, and lower health care costs. The study, supported by The Commonwealth Fund and led by Ruben Amarasingham M.D., M.B.A., Associate Chief of Medicine at Parkland Health & Hospital System and Assistant Professor of Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical School and Neil Powe, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., Professor of Medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, surveyed physicians from 41 hospitals in Texas treating a diverse group of patients across a variety of conditions including heart attack, heart failure, and pneumonia.

The survey directly measures physicians using health IT in a hospital setting. Respondents were asked about their use of several different types of health IT including electronic notes and records, order entry, and clinical decision support. Researchers found that relatively modest increases in technology use had dramatic resultsa 10 point increase in the use of electronic notes and medical records was associated with a 15 percent reduction in the likelihood of patient death. And, when physicians electronically entered their instructions for patient care, there was a 55 percent reduction in the likelihood of death for some procedures. Increased use of health IT was also linked to lower costs: hospitals with automated test results, order entry, and decision support experienced lower costs for all hospital admissions (-$110, -$132, and -$538, respectively per admission).

"These findings tell us, straight from the physicians using it, that this technology works to improve quality of care for patientsthe first priority of health information technology," said Commonwealth Fund Vice President for Quality Improvement and Efficiency Anne-Marie Audet, M.D. "But, in order to sa
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