As patients are bombarded with more choice and information than ever, the burdened health system seems to lack the appropriate support to manage increasing demands for personalized and convenient care.
Today’s infographic comes to us from Publicis Health, and it demonstrates how electronic health records are an important piece in the puzzle to improve experiences for patients and providers alike.
At a Crossroads
As it stands, the current healthcare industry faces several challenges. Patients today have more complex needs and wants, while physicians are struggling to keep up.
- 25% of Americans have multiple chronic conditions.
- 63% of patients forget to adhere to medications.
- 40% of doctors feel that their work pace is chaotic.
- 60% of doctors feel that visits are too short to treat patients effectively.
Adding to these challenges, the healthcare industry is grappling with significant amounts of technological change, while also trying to keep costs in check. Between 2015 and 2017, hospitals lost $6.8 billion in operating income – that’s an average decline of nearly 40% in just two years.
A New Direction for Patient Care
Enter electronic health records (EHRs) – platforms used to conveniently store a patient’s health information and offer all sorts of services, from scheduling appointments and consultations to identifying patients at risk and guiding care decisions.
An improvement on physical paper charts, EHRs allow a patient’s medical history to be shared securely and instantly across different settings.
First conceived in 2009 under the Obama administration’s Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) act, EHRs have rapidly evolved as they’ve been implemented in the industry, with 87% office-based doctors nationwide relying on the system.
Today, EHRs are a massive industry: the global market was worth $23.6 billion in 2016, and it’s expected to reach close to $33.3 billion by 2023. It’s clear their real capabilities are still just at the tip of the iceberg.
As technology progresses to incorporate artificial intelligence and big data into healthcare, the point of care for patients will likely extend beyond the four walls of a doctor’s office and out into the world. In other words, EHR systems act like a GPS, helping doctors and care teams navigate patient care more efficiently. This improves patient-doctor interactions, resulting in better outcomes.
