Viewing EHRS On Mobile Devices Better Than Viewing On PCs
By Katie Wike, contributing writer
According to a recent report, doctors who view electronic health records on mobile devices are more satisfied than those who use PCs.
Software Advice’s annual electronic health record (EHR) survey found mobile electronic health record users are more satisfied than those who viewed EHRs on their laptop or desktop computers.
- 76 percent still access EHRs via a desktop or laptop
- 26 percent use a tablet or smartphone
- 58 percent of those accessing EHRs from a mobile device reported they were "very satisfied"
- 28 percent of non-mobile users were “very satisfied”
“One reason for this discrepancy could be that mHealth users tend to be more technologically savvy, so they're more familiar with EHR technology and perhaps more apt to understand it,” mHealth News reports. Also, “Mobile users might be accessing EHRs at home, after work, when they're more relaxed and more apt to work their way through any difficulties.”
Seventy-three percent of mHealth users reported that an EHR did not decrease productivity, while 42 percent of non-mobile users reported the same. mHealth News says it’s important to note, “Clinicians who can access EHRs at the bedside, in the corridors or in the lab are likely getting more work done than the doctor or nurse who has to find the time in a busy day to sit down at a computer workstation or power up the laptop.”
Black Book also notes that 89 percent of primary care and internal medicine physicians already using smartphones to communicate with other staff.
Other key findings of this report include:
- investing more in patient portals was a top priority, partially due to the need to improve patient engagement
- over half of users reported having difficulties integrating data from external systems with their EHR system
- 28 percent of those surveyed expect to increase their investment in EHR technology through the end of the year
- 54 percent said they'd keep their level of investment the same