Government leadership in addressing public health priorities: Strides and delays in electronic laboratory reporting in the United States

R.T. Gluskin, M. Mavinkurve and J.K. Varma

American Journal of Public Health, 2014, vol. 104, issue 3, e16-e21

Abstract: For nearly a decade, interest groups, from politicians to economists to physicians, have touted digitization of the nation's health information. One frequently mentioned benefit is the transmission of information electronically from laboratories to public health personnel, allowing them to rapidly analyze and act on these data. Switching from paper to electronic laboratory reports (ELRs) was thought to solve many public health surveillance issues, including workload, accuracy, and timeliness. However, barriers remain for both laboratories and public health agencies to realize the full benefits of ELRs. The New York City experience highlights several successes and challenges of electronic reporting and is supported by peer-reviewed literature. Lessons learned from ELR systems will benefit efforts to standardize electronic medical records reporting to health departments.

Keywords: article; electronic medical record; government; health survey; hospital information system; human; leadership; mandatory reporting; mass communication; public health service; system analysis; time; United States, Clinical Laboratory Information Systems; Diffusion of Innovation; Electronic Health Records; Humans; Leadership; Local Government; Mandatory Reporting; New York City; Population Surveillance; Public Health Practice; Systems Integration; Time Factors (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:aph:ajpbhl:10.2105/ajph.2013.301753_4

DOI: 10.2105/AJPH.2013.301753

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