Medical information technology is essential to improving the efficiency of the health care system, according to C. Martin Harris, chief information officer and chair of the information technology division at the Cleveland Clinic. Harris discussed the role of electronic medical records in health care reform in his lecture, held on Friday at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
The Cleveland Clinic has often been mentioned in Washington, D.C., as a model of affordable and efficient care during the health care reform debate. President Barack Obama met with Harris, along with other members of the clinic's staff, on July 23 to discuss health care reform initiatives.
"When we talked to him, there really were three themes on his mind," Harris said. "The first one really was not about health care reform, as it's currently being articulated, but about the effective delivery of medical care that makes a difference for patients. The second is the ability to prove it over time in terms of truly and transparently demonstrating an advance in quality and efficiency as we deliver the care. The third really was the relationship of health information technology to that reality."
Harris said that his team recommended the physician-led group practice as a model for improving health care delivery in the meeting with Obama. Both the Cleveland Clinic and DHMC use this model.
Harris also explained the origins of the Cleveland Clinic's transition to an electronic medical information system, saying that such innovations were necessary to "change the paradigm of medical practice delivery." Beginning with the creation of "E-Cleveland Clinic," which allows patients and physicians to access a variety of services online, the clinic launched several new medical information technology initiatives and programs.
"E-Cleveland Clinic's mission is to use health care technology to deliver services to patients wherever they are in a way that we couldn't do if we were just using a pen and paper," Harris said. "We also focus on positively effecting [patients'] outcomes and think about the generation of new knowledge and education while we do that."
MyConsult, an electronic database developed by Harris' team, allows patients to request a second opinion from any physician on the system in the world. Another Internet-based program, Dr. Connect, electronically connects community physicians with specialists, helping physicians share patients' medical histories and treatment plans.
The clinic's MyMonitoring program allows an Internet-enabled, Bluetooth-equipped pacemaker to transfer its readings automatically to a patient's computer in his or her home. The information is then directly transferred into an electronic medical record system.
Harris and his information technology team at the Cleveland Clinic have also worked closely with Google to create a U.S. health information service that allows patients to access their medical records.
Google released the information service as Google Health in May 2008.
Google Health provides a password-protected web site that connects patient-users with major U.S. pharmacies, hospitals and sources of information about their health condition and medical history.
Harris said that there is still some "plumbing work" to do before the program can be used to its full potential.
"Right now, we must focus on the effective use and adoption of health care technology in all hospitals of the country," Harris said in an interview with The Dartmouth. "We need [hospitals] using the tools and technology before we can make significant advances in information technology that are effective."
