United Press International - Wednesday, November 12, 2003
Katrina Woznicki, United Press International

The American Academy of Family Physicians said although many doctors' offices across the country already are using new computerized health record bookkeeping systems, many more do not. If the technology could be extended to the entire physician population, however, e-health records ultimately could save the nation billions of dollars -- though experts said there are no current savings estimates and it could take years to reap financial benefits.

Nationally, "administration inefficiencies can run as high as $300 billion," said Dr. Mark Leavitt, vice president of clinical initiatives for GE Medical Systems Information Technologies in Milwaukee, one of the companies participating in the alliance. Using electronic health records could cut those costs significantly, he added.

Inefficiencies include patients having to fill out clipboard medical histories every time they change physicians or see a specialist. They also involve having to take duplicate tests, such as blood or other laboratory work, and using physician handwritten notes and prescriptions, which often can be difficult to read if physicians need to share patient information.

Leavitt said duplicate testing was "an area of significant hidden costs."

By making the data available electronically, doctors could eliminate the cumbersome healthcare paper trail.

To demonstrate, Dr. Michael O. Fleming, AAFP's president, held up a thick manila folder full of papers. The folder was the third volume of records belonging to a single female patient he had been caring for over the past 25 years.

"Can you imagine how inefficient it is to use this record?" Fleming asked. With electronic health recording, all of a patient's lifetime data "would be at my fingertips in an instant."

"Healthcare is the only industry on paper" nowadays, Leavitt said, adding 4 out of 5 U.S. physicians do not yet use electronic health recording.

The 10 companies that agreed to offer the following services to AAFP's 94,000 members are:

-GE Medical Systems, which will provide electronic health record software;

-Hewlett Packard, of Palo Alto, Calif., which will provide discounts on technology through a Web site configured specially for the academy;

-MedPlexus Inc., of Santa Clara, Calif., which is working with the academy to improve the functionality of electronic health systems and will provide discounted software and services;

-MedPlus Inc., of Mason, Ohio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Quest Diagnostics Inc., that will offer discounted interface software and data management services;

-NextGen Healthcare Information Systems Inc., of Horsham, Pa., and Physician Micro Systems Inc., of Seattle, which both will offer discounts on practice management and software packages;

-Siemens Medical Solutions Health Services Corp., of Malvern, Pa., which will provide engineering expertise; and

-Welch Allyn Inc., of Skaneateles Falls, N.Y., which will offer electronic measurement devices and interface software to help transfer patient data.

Dr. Douglas Henley, AAFP's executive vice president, said the academy's partnerships are not endorsements.

"These are not exclusive agreements we have reached with our partners," he said and noted AAFP will not profit financially from the alliance.

E-health filing systems also can be compatible with the computerized billing systems already in place in the offices of 95 percent of AAFP members -- though less than 10 percent maintain health information on patients electronically, Henley said.

Fleming said implementing this new technology "will not cost the patient 1 cent" and will significantly increase patient care.

"You have an opportunity to reduce medical errors, which in the long term, can have a significant impact on healthcare costs," said Bonnie Labosky of Welch Allyn Inc.

In 1999, the Institute of Medicine released a report showing 44,000 to 98,000 people die every year because of medical errors. The report estimated medical errors cost the U.S. healthcare system approximately $37.6 billion annually, of which about $17 billion were linked to preventable errors.

To save money is going to require spending money, Leavitt said. Getting started with the new electronic systems will run a single doctor's office anywhere from $25,000 to $50,000. That includes the costs of multiple computers, software, program training, and information technology support and maintenance.

"That's very substantial for a physician's office," Leavitt said. AAFP members will qualify for a variety of discounts through this alliance and will be able to participate in monthly payment programs instead of being expected to agree to a long-term contract to use the equipment.

Alliance members agreed e-health records are critical to the future of America's healthcare system. An increasing portion of healthcare now focuses on managing chronic conditions, instead of simply treating acute illnesses. Treating chronic conditions -- such as mental illness, HIV, cancer and heart disease -- requires more resources and more collaboration between healthcare providers, experts said.

"Electronic health records have the potential to reinvigorate primary care," Leavitt predicted.

Jon Zimmerman, vice president of eHealth at Siemens, agreed. "There is a moral and economic imperative we have before us," he said.

Katrina Woznicki covers health issues for UPI Science News. E-mail sciencemail@upi.com

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