| | | | |  |
| |  |
| |
|
Health Information Technology (HIT) is the use of computers and computer programs, such as an electronic health record (EHR) to store, retrieve and securely transfer patient information electronically within health care settings. HIT use in clinics includes three phases: 1) adopting an EHR system; 2) using the technology to gather and manage patient information; and 3) exchanging information among doctors' offices. Care You Should Expect to Receive
How Will This Help Me? Doctors, hospitals, laboratories and pharmacies that use HIT can document and share information about the care they provide to you. This can be helpful if you see multiple doctors or have a medical condition that requires specific types of care. For example, if you have diabetes and need emergency care in another community, emergency department providers can quickly learn of your diabetes treatments through your EHR. This information will help them determine the treatment that is best for your emergency condition and also safe for patients with diabetes. When you return to your community, your doctor can learn about the emergency care you received and make sure you receive appropriate follow-up care. |  |
|
The table and checkmarks below show how extensively Minnesota doctors and other health care providers are using HIT in their practices. Each checkmark is a milestone. More green checkmarks means more extensive HIT use, which relates to higher-quality care. View Milestones for HIT Use The Checkmarks - Each checkmark represents a milestone in the advancement of HIT use in provider practices. More green checkmarks means more extensive HIT use, which relates to higher-quality care. Small differences in the number of checkmarks should not be of concern. It is more important to look at larger differences. The information in this report is collected annually, and may not reflect recent advancements in an individual clinic's HIT use. Talk with your doctor if you have questions about their score. About Our Report - This report is based on provider responses to the 2012 Health Information Technology (HIT) Ambulatory Clinic Survey, submitted to MN Community Measurement. The survey was sent to all clinics in early 2012 and the response rate was more than 83%. Statewide Summary |  |
The increase of HIT use in doctors' offices across Minnesota is summarized above. These numbers represent the percentage of doctor's offices across the state that have achieved milestones in each phase of HIT use. For example, the first 
