Unless the healthcare IT ecosystem experiences major policy changes or leaps in technological capabilities, many hospitals will not reach Stage 7 of HIMSS Analytics’ Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) until 2035, according to new research.
The study, published in the August edition of the Journal of Medical Internet Research, analyzed Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Analytics’ EMRAM data from 2006 to 2014.
HIMSS Analytics is the research arm of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). HIMSS Analytics developed the EMRAM in 2005 as a methodology for evaluating the progress and impact of electronic medical records on health systems around the world. Tracking their progress in completing eight stages (0-7), hospitals can review the implementation and utilization of information and technology applications culminating with Stage 7, which represents an advanced electronic patient record environment. Other Stage 7 requirements include: leveraging an external HIE (health information exchange); use of a data warehouse; and having robust data analytics functions.
The researchers of this study noted that the meaningful use (MU) program has promoted electronic health record (EHR) adoption among U.S. hospitals. And while studies have shown that EHR adoption has been slower than desired in certain types of hospitals; generally, the overall adoption rate has increased among hospitals.
However, the researchers continued, these studies have neither evaluated the adoption of advanced functionalities of electronic health records (beyond meaningful use,) nor forecasted EHR maturation over an extended period in a holistic fashion. “Additional research is needed to prospectively assess U.S. hospitals’ electronic health record technology adoption and advancement patterns,” the researchers stated.
The HIMSS EMRAM data set was used to track historic uptakes of various EHR functionalities considered critical to improving healthcare quality and efficiency in hospitals. A technology diffusion model was then used to predict the technological diffusion rates for repeated EHR adoptions where upgrades undergo rapid technological improvements. The forecast used EMRAM data from 2006 to 2014 to estimate adoption levels to the year 2035.
In 2014, more than 5,400 hospitals completed HIMSS’ annual EMRAM survey (86 percent of total U.S. hospitals). Back in 2006, the majority of the U.S. hospitals were in EMRAM Stages 0, 1, and 2. But by 2014, most hospitals had achieved Stages 3, 4, and 5, the study noted.
The researchers found that in 2006, the first year of observation, peaks of Stages 0 and 1 were shown as EHR adoption precedes HIMSS’ EMRAM. By 2007, Stage 2 reached its peak. Stage 3 reached its full height by 2011, while Stage 4 peaked by 2014. This forecast indicates that Stage 5 should peak by 2019 and Stage 6 by 2026, according to the data revealed in the study.
The researchers noted, “Although this forecast extends to the year 2035, no peak was readily observed for Stage 7. Overall, most hospitals will achieve Stages 5, 6, or 7 of EMRAM by 2020; however, a considerable number of hospitals will not achieve Stage 7 by 2035.” They concluded, “These results indicate that U.S. hospitals are decades away from fully implementing sophisticated decision support applications and interoperability functionalities in electronic health records as defined by EMRAM’s Stage 7.”
