Some Americans still confused about electronic health records, poll shows

As healthcare providers work to adopt electronic health records and achieve Stage 2 meaningful-use standards, most Americans are confused and concerned about the transition from paper to digital, according to a survey by Xerox.

Xerox, which polled about 2,000 U.S. adults in its fourth annual EHR survey, found that only 29% of them had been told by their physicians that their medical records would be converted from paper to digital format. And although most of the respondents think EHRs will reduce healthcare costs (62%) and improve quality of healthcare service (73%), even more (83%) worry about digital issues including security. Nearly seven out of 10 do not want their medical records in a digital format.

To qualify for the federal Stage 2 meaningful-use incentives, which began Tuesday, hospitals will have one year to transition patient records to online portals and have at least 5% of patients accessing their data in that way, according to Xerox. Right now, only 19% of adults surveyed are able to access their medical records online.

“The juxtaposition here is that since the HITECH Act became law four years ago, healthcare providers have made tremendous strides in adopting EHRs, but there has been little to no change in Americans' acceptance of digital medical records,” Charles Fred, president of healthcare provider solutions at Xerox, said in a news release. “Patients will soon have more access to their personal health information than ever before, but they need to be educated by providers on how this will empower them to take charge of their own care.”

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