Electronic Medical Records in Acute Care Hospitals: Correlates, Efficiency, and Quality

<p>The purpose of this dissertation is to examine the organizational and environmental correlates of hospital EMR use and to examine the relationship between hospital EMR use and performance. Using a theoretical framework that combines resource dependence theory with Donabedian's structure, process, outcome model, a conceptual model is created. To test the hypotheses of this model, logistic regression and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) are used. The data included in this analysis come from the AHA, HIMSS, CMS, ARF, and HQA. In the analysis of hospitals correlates of EMR use, three hypotheses were supported, and one was partially supported. Hospital system affiliation, bed size, and environmental uncertainty were found to be positively associated with hospital EMR use. Hospital rurality was found to be associated with EMR use for all categories except one; at every other level of rurality, as the hospital moves on a continuum from least rural to most urban, the likelihood of hospital EMR use also increases. Hospital EMR use was not found to be associated with teaching status, environmental munificence, competition, operating margin, ownership, or public payer mix. In the hospital performance analyses, one hypothesis was supported, and one was partially supported. Regarding quality, hospitals with EMRs were found to provide higher quality than those without EMRs. In efficiency performance, only small hospitals with EMRs were found to be more efficient than hospitals without EMRs. No support was found that hospitals with EMRs improve their efficiency over time more than hospitals without EMRs. Hospital EMR use does vary by certain organizational and environmental characteristics. For this reason, hospitals and policy makers must take action that enables and encourages all hospitals to implement and use EMRs because some hospitals do not have the motivation or resources to begin using EMRs on their own. Hospital EMR use is positively associated with high quality care, thus justifying the practice. Hospital efficiency was not found to be associated with EMR use in medium or large hospitals, but it was found to be associated with EMR use in small hospitals. Interestingly, larger hospitals are more likely to use EMRs than small hospitals. It is possible that the efficiency gains of EMR use in hospitals will not be realized until a standardized, fully interoperable system is developed, allowing health care provides to quickly and easily share the medical charts of their patients.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Health Administration

Year dc:date.available

2006

Author dc:creator

• Swanson, Abby Jo

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Yasar A. Ozcan

• technology
• organizational management
• hospital performance
• quality assurance
• health care costs
• record keeping
• Health and Medical Administration
• Medicine and Health Sciences

Statement dc:rights

• © The Author

Identifier

https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/871

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarscompass.vcu.edu:etd-1870