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US Doctors Use Electronic Records

According to CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), around 25% of the doctors in the US used some kind of electronic patients record during the year of 2005. Even though it is a progress in comparison to 2004, when only about 21% of doctors used electronic health records, the statistics are still far from the final destination, which is universal electronic health information about every US citizen by 2014.

It is agreed by most experts that the electronic records will bring only advantages to the health system. Electronic records will help reduce errors by keeping all the necessary information about a patient. They also will prevent unnecessary duplicated tests and reduce the costs by reducing the staff that is needed to manage the information files. However, there is no agreement whether the doctors themselves or somebody else should pay for the electronic records.

The CDC report also shows that there are gaps between large medical practices and smaller doctor groups. Much more doctors who work in large groups use electronic information records, than doctors who work alone or in small groups. The American College of Physicians` Dr. William Golden, an internist at the University of Arkansas, said of the electronic adoption: "It hasn`t been going quickly". He added, however, that state efforts and new product certification could help.