Electronic Health Record Essay

The electronic health record also known as the EHR, has transformed the world of health care and documentation as we know it. An electronic health record is a â€Å" computer-based data warehouse or repository of information regarding the health status of a client, which is replacing the former paper-based medical record; it is the systematic documentation of a client’s health status and health care in a secured digital format , meaning that is can be processed, stored, transmitted, and accessed by authorized interdisciplinary professionals for the purpose of supporting efficient, high-quality health care across the client’s healthcare continuum† (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2015). Electronic health records has been an idea since the 1980’s but there was not a big push for use until President Bush made his union address in January 2004. He pushed for most Americans to have access to their electronic health records by 2014 (McGonigle & Mastrian, 2015). There are many benefits to the EHR that helps the patients, nurses, and other medical staff. There are also some concerns that have arisen as well. Overall the EHR, has been a positive change for the healthcare system as a whole. There are several advantages of the EHR not only for the healthcare worker but also for the patient. With EHR there is an increased quality of care due to the amount of information at hand from every available medical source. With this patients have more faster and efficient medical diagnosis and treatments (Spring, 2008). There is also more convenient data history that includes labs, medications, vaccination records, and medical tests that can be shared between physicians the patient is seeing (Electronic Health Record, 2014). This gives an overall better picture of the patient’s health as a whole. As with any advantages there is always some disadvantages.