EHR Adoption Behavioral Health improves Health Care Delivery and Outcomes

EHR Adoption Behavioral Health Improves Health Care Delivery and Outcomes

2018

Holistic patient care that blends clinical and mental healthcare is a critical for efficient population health management.

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Electronic health records (EHRs) have become widespread across the United States. Most physician specialties have implemented the software and medical transcription outsourcing companies help them maintain accurate and timely documentation. However, the adoption of EHRs has been slow among behavioral health specialists. This is a matter of concern as mental health issues are strongly correlated with chronic disease. Leaving mental illness untreated can result in lack of medication adherence, increased mortality, and higher care costs. Mental illness affects nearly one in five US adults each year and holistic patient care that blends clinical and mental healthcare is a critical for the success for population health management. The problems caused by lack of EHR adoption in behavioral health are: -

Leads to an incomplete picture of a patient’s health

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Poses a barrier to the exchange of health information across practices, leading to improper management of mental health patients

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Results in fragmented or duplicated care delivery

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Prevents epidemiological and evaluative studies of disease

Barriers to EHR Adoption in Behavioral Health The reason why behavioral health has been left behind in EHR adoption is that it has barriers that other health fields do not have: -

Behavioral healthcare records are highly sensitive in nature, and subject to stricter confidentiality rules as regards the sharing of patient information

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These records may have information about people other than the patient, such as ex-spouses

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Financial concerns: www.behavioral.net reported that

51 percent of the 500

member organizations in a 2012 National Council HIT Adoption and Readiness for Meaningful Use in Behavioral Health Survey identified one of three financial concerns as their primary barrier to EHR adoption: 30 % - upfront costs of implementation; 12 % - ongoing maintenance costs, and 9 % - lost revenue during transition -

Lack of incentive payment programs and administrative and policy support

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Concern relating to return on investment

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User resistance and lack of skills

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General lack of interoperability of EHRs

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Lack of Behavioral Health Data in Primary Care EHR

Mental and physical health is inextricably linked. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines: health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

Poor mental health is a risk factor for chronic physical

conditions. People with serious mental health conditions are at high risk of chronic medical problems and those with chronic physical conditions are at risk of developing poor mental health. This is why the integration of behavioral health data in primary care EHRs is important.

Last year, EHR Intelligence reported on a 2016 study published in the Journal of American Medical Informatics Association (JAMIA) which investigated the lack of behavioral health data in primary care EHR technology. The findings are as follows: -

The primary care EHRs of 27.3 percent of patients with depression and 27.7 percent of patients with bipolar disorder did not have a diagnosis of their mental illness.

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The primary care record often lacked data about mental health patient-provider encounters in non-primary care settings.

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Almost 90 percent of acute psychiatric services at hospital facilities, which usually provide the most severe treatment for mental illness, were not available in the EHR.

The researchers concluded that incorporating behavioral health and other data types into primary care EHR technology is crucial to bridge these information gaps and properly manage patient mental health for positive overall health outcomes.

More recent studies also note that promoting efficient EHR use and behavioral health data exchange can go a long way in improving patient care delivery. The results of a new AHIMA study published in Perspectives in Health Information Management indicate that behavioral health clinicians’ adoption of EHRs can be enhanced if providers view the EHR as a tool that will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their practice. The aim of this study was to identify the barriers to EHR adoption in the behavioral health community by measuring the relationships between perceptions of usefulness, ease of use, and demographic variables among licensed marriage and family therapists. The researchers report that improving EHR usability and getting a definitive return on investment are critical for driving health IT adoption among behavioral health specialists. www.medicaltranscriptionservicecompany.com

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Measures to Promote Behavioral Health Data Exchange

Healthcare stakeholders at both the federal and state levels are working to improve information sharing between behavioral and primary care organizations. This includes a move by the Department of Health and Human Services (HSS) to decrease the stringent rules related to the exchange of certain behavioral health data, allowing people receiving treatment for substance abuse disorders to take part in integrated healthcare models.

States have also taken measures to increase behavioral health data exchange and care coordination. Maine’s state health information exchange (HIE) enrolled 20 behavioral health organizations across 75 locations in 2015 and allowed data exchange with primary care physicians and hospitals. This led to improved care integration for nearly 3000 patients.

In December 2016, EHR Intelligence reported on a study from Brandeis University which suggested that private health plans that supported patient care access, condition assessment, and treatment through health IT can encourage behavioral healthcare providers to integrate EHRs into their clinical workflows.

Improving electronic health record (EHR) adoption among behavioral health clinicians is crucial. As the authors of the AHIMA study point out, “Ultimately, the EHR is here to stay, and finding ways to improve adoption rates and attitudes around this technology will help clinicians, healthcare organizations, and, most importantly, the consumers of behavioral healthcare services.�

As steps are taken to encourage EHR adoption and data exchange in behavioral health, proper clinical documentation is critical to deliver quality care. Medical transcription companies play an important role in ensuring that health care providers have access to complete and accurate information that will allow them to provide better medical care.

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