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Dr. David Blumenthal, the national coordinator for Health IT, during his keynote at HIMSS in Atlanta, drew personal experience to describe the value of electronic medical records ( EMR ).

Blumenthal described experiences from a former role at Partners Healthcare in Boston, where, he said, he had a first-hand look at what electronic medical records can do when a patient prescription order turned up a request for sulfa drugs.

He explained many of the regulatory steps the ONC has taken in recent months, which have included the Dec. 30, 2009 release of the interim final rule for "meaningful use" as it pertains to electronic medical records.

"Meaningful use" has become a persistent buzzword in healthcare IT in the past year, as its guidelines will inform how physician practices, hospitals and other health care entities qualify for incentives under HITECH, the health care legislative piece of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

Blumenthal and HHS also released a proposal for how to test and certify electronic health records, for which HHS is now in its public comment period.

Blumenthal further explained the ongoing process to approve and process government grants for health care IT education, and urged the audience to stay focused on "beacon communities" and the development of health information exchange ( HIE ).

Blumenthal was appointed the national coordinator for health IT, head of the Office of the National Coordinator at the Department of Health and Human Services, in 2009, succeeding Dr. Robert Kolodner. 

Source: HIMSS

You can get more details about EMR & its related topics from our EMR User Group.