| Partners Electronic Health Record
Earns Federally-Recognized Certification
Meets All 2006 Requirements for EHR Functionality and Security
BOSTON, MA – Partners HealthCare today announced that its internally
developed ambulatory electronic health record has been certified by
the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology
(CCHIT) as meeting all 2006 criteria for functionality and security.
CCHIT is an independent, nonprofit organization that has been officially
recognized by the federal government as a “recognized certification
body” for electronic health record products. Ambulatory electronic
health records are designed for physician offices and clinics where
most Americans receive their health care.
According to Partners Chief Information Officer John P. Glaser, PhD,
“We believe this certification provides our clinicians with
the confidence that they are using or implementing an electronic health
record that meets the highest industry standards. It should also be
reassuring to our patients to know that their confidential medical
information is protected.”
The Partners Longitudinal Medical Record (LMR) is a web-based ambulatory
electronic health record that is used across the Partners HealthCare
system. Today, 78% of Partners primary care physicians and 62% of
specialists use electronic medical records, and Partners is encouraging
all of its physicians to implement electronic medical record systems
by 2009.
“The LMR represents a key component of Partners’ High
Performance Medicine initiative, which seeks to improve quality, safety,
and efficiency through the use of systems that help physicians and
other caregivers deliver the best possible care to patients,”
said Thomas H. Lee, MD, chief executive officer of Partners Community
HealthCare, Inc. (PCHI), the physician network associated with Partners
HealthCare.
With the LMR, clinicians can maintain patient records electronically,
improve office workflow and efficiency, and share data with other
Partners clinicians to improve coordination of care and communications.
By viewing patient information electronically, physicians and other
clinicians can easily see what drugs and treatments have been ordered
by other physicians, avoiding potentially dangerous drug interactions
and the ordering of unnecessary drugs and tests.
Glaser noted that Partners physicians, along with medical informaticians
and researchers, were closely involved in the design, development,
and testing of the LMR.
Through the certification process, the Partners LMR met 100% of
the CCHIT criteria in the following areas:
- Functionality – Ability to create and manage electronic
records for all patients, as well as automating workflow in a physician’s
office.
- Interoperability – A first step in the ability to
receive and send electronic data to other entities, such as laboratories.
- Security and reliability – Ability to keep patient
information safe and secure.
- Physicians who purchase certified products have the assurance
that they have been reviewed by a panel of judges, including practicing
physicians, and that they have been evaluated against standards
set by professionals in the field,” said Mark Leavitt, MD,
PhD, CCHIT chair.
About Partners HealthCare
Partners HealthCare, located in Boston, is an integrated health system
founded in 1994 by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Massachusetts
General Hospital. In addition to its two academic medical centers,
the Partners system also includes community and specialty hospitals,
community health centers, a physician network, and home health and
long-term care services. Partners is one of the nation’s leading
biomedical research organizations and a principal teaching affiliate
of Harvard Medical School. Partners HealthCare is a non-profit organization.
More information about Partners is available at www.partners.org.
About CCHIT
The Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology
is an independent, nonprofit organization that has been officially
recognized by the federal government as a “recognized certification
body” for electronic health record products. Its mission is
to accelerate the adoption of health information technology by creating
a credible, sustainable product certification program. The certification
requirements are based on widely accepted industry standards and involve
the work of hundreds of expert volunteers and input from a variety
of stakeholders throughout the health care industry. More information
on the Commission and CCHIT CertifiedSM products is available at www.cchit.org.
“CCHITSM” and “CCHIT CertifiedSM” are service
marks of the Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology.
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