Almost 60 percent of hospitals exchanged patient data electronically in 2012, a 41 percent jump from 2008, according to a study in Health Affairs.
Researchers, including Farzad Mostashari, MD, the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, analyzed IT supplements from the American Hospital Association's Annual Survey of Hospitals. Limiting the scope of the study to nonfederal acute-care hospitals eligible for meaningful use incentives, the sample included 2,805 hospitals in 2008 and 2,836 hospitals in 2012.
Results showed that 58 percent of hospitals were exchanging patient data with entities outside the hospital's organization in 2012. Exchange rates varied by organization with which the hospitals were sharing data — in 2012, 51 percent of hospitals exchanged data with unaffiliated ambulatory surgery centers, but only 36 percent exchanged information with other hospitals. Exchange rates similarly varied among the type of data shared. More than half of hospitals exchanged lab results and radiology reports, while just one-third exchanged care summaries or medication lists.
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