Dearth of data evaluating IT in doctor practices

A review of the literature shows most studies on health technology have focused on large, early-adopting organizations.

By Tyler Chin, AMNews staff. May 15, 2006.

Looking at 274 studies examining the impact of health information technologies, a government-financed report concludes they show one thing: More studies are needed.

That's because many studies focused on large, early-adopting organizations rather than smaller entities such as physician practices, according to the study conducted by the RAND Corp., a Santa Monica, Calif.-based think tank. The study was funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services.

The researchers' findings are based on a systematic review of 274 studies evaluating the impact of health information technologies, including electronic medical records and computerized physician order-entry, on health care delivery. Most of those studies were published between 1995 and January 2004, but some were published up to April 2005.

The studies showed that clinical health information technologies can significantly improve quality of care. But that conclusion is based on the fact that 25% of the studies researchers reviewed came from just four large organizations that have been early adopters of clinical information technology -- the Regenstrief Institute, Indianapolis; the Dept. of Veterans Affairs, Washington D.C.; Brigham and Women's Hospital/Partners HealthCare, Boston; and LDS Hospital/Intermountain Healthcare, Salt Lake City.