Kentucky has some of the worst rankings in the nation for chronic diseases, but the Commonwealth is a leader for the use of electronic record-keeping. That’s what Kentucky’s Public Health Commissioner told medical providers and administrators in Bowling Green Tuesday who gathered for an e-health summit.
Dr. Stephanie Mayfield said one of the benefits of electronic records is more immediate patient care.
“When a patient comes into a hospital or private provider’s office, not having to call or search where that patient’s been, or if that patient isn’t able to tell you where they’ve been, it’s such a medical efficiency to be able to look up that information through the health information exchange," explained Mayfield.
Electronic record-keeping is also intended to increase the accuracy of patient records and reduce medical errors. Dr. Mayfield said every Kentucky hospital now utilizes electronic records and more than 400 individual providers have signed on.
