Reports Examine Prospects Of Center For Evidence-Based Medicine, Barriers To HIE Sustainability

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Article Date: 27 Feb 2008 - 6:00 PST

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"Creating a Center for Evidence-Based Medicine," Medicare Payment Advisory Commission: The report by staff from the American Institutes for Research discusses how the U.S. could implement a more comprehensive and systematic approach to using evidence-based medicine in improving health care. In addition, the report discusses the barriers and challenges to establishing such a system, as well as the possible structure of an organization that promotes evidence-based medicine (Moon et al., MedPAC, February 2008).

"Creating Sustainable Local Health Information Exchanges: Can Barriers to Stakeholder Participation Be Overcome?" Center for Studying Health System Change/National Institute for Health Care Management Foundation: The study, funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, examines the perspectives of stakeholders -- such as hospitals, physicians, health plans, employers and others -- on participation in health information exchanges. According to the findings, despite the potential of HIEs to improve health care quality and efficiency, rival hospitals, doctors and health plans are reluctant to electronically share patient clinical data because of concerns about the potential loss of competitive advantage and data misuse. The study also examines the achievements of some HIEs throughout the country that have become viable by meeting specific business needs for more efficient care, as well as other HIEs that have struggled to identify and finance initial services because of a lack of hospital participation (HSC/NIHCMF release, 2/25).

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