EMR, EHR, EPR, CPR

According to OpenClinical.org, terms used in the field include electronic medical record (EMR), electronic patient record (EPR), electronic health record (EHR), computer-based patient record (CPR) etc. These terms can be used interchangeably or generically but some specific differences have been identified. For example, an Electronic Patient Record has been defined as encapsulating a record of care provided by a single site, in contrast to an Electronic Health Record which provides a longitudinal record of a patient’s care carried out across different institutions and sectors. But such differentiations are not consistently observed.

Meaningful Use

According to HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) officials, EHR technology is "meaningful" when it has capabilities including  e-prescribing, exchanging electronic health information to improve the quality of care, having the capacity to provide clinical decision support to support practitioner order entry and submitting clinical quality measures - and other measures - as selected by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Officials say physicians must meet the definition within a specified time frame, which as described in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

New England Journal of Medicine - The "Meaningful Use" Regulation for Electronic Health Records

Summary Overview of "Meaningful Use" Objectives - Table from above NEJM article

Crossing Over: Health Sciences Librarians Contributing and Collaborating on Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Implementation - Journal of Hospital Librarianship, Volume 9, Issue 1, January 2009 , pages 89 - 107. (No free full text available)

The University of Washington Electronic Medical Record Experience - Journal of the Medical Library Association, Volume 98, Number 3, July 2010, pages 217-219.

EHR Watch

EHRScope

Open Forum: EMR, EHR and HIPAA

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services - Overview of EHR Incentives

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has produced an 11-minute step-by-step video tutorial for registration for the EHR Incentive Payments Programs for Eligible Professionals. It includes links to transcript and additional instruction guides for Eligible Professionals.

U.S. Department of Health & Human Services: Electronic Health Records and Meaningful Use: Provides resources and background of legislation and regulations.

EHR and EMR Videos - EMR Video Commentary, EMR Demo Videos and Other Healthcare IT Videos