By H. Jay Wisnicki, MDPhysicians believe computers are having a positive impact on their practice and the quality of medical care they deliver, according to a
Harris Interactive survey conducted in cooperation with Pricewaterhouse-
Coopers and The Institute for the Future. The survey was conducted for The Health Technology Center (HealthTech).
More than 96% of respondents believe that Internet-enabled clinical services will make the practice of medicine easier, while improving the quality of care by 2003. More than 80% say that
certain Internet applications are essential or important. These applications include:
- General research: This was rated as essential by 45% and important by 44% of respondents. Physicians, like the public, have found the Internet to be a valuable research tool. Information
gleaned via the Web is not limited to making travel plans and buying collectibles on eBay. Physicians are taking advantage of the vast amounts of reference material available electronically.
- Diagnostic reporting, including order and look up: This was rated as essential by 43% and important by 45%. Connecting to labs' Web sites allows the physician to track patients' records better.
- Eligibility authorizations: This was rated as essential by 43% and important by 43%. Being able to tap into insurance providers' sites to determine patient coverage reduces time spent on
hold with health-care administrators.
- Assessing guidelines and protocols: This was rated as essential by 31% and important by
53%. The Internet can provide an easy method to ensure physicians are following proper protocols for each diagnosis.
- Claim information: This was rated as essential by 38% and important by 46%. Again, claim
status can be easily checked via insurance providers' sites.
- Information technology (IT) support: This was rated as essential by 35% and important by
49%. IT support is one of the bailiwicks of the Internet—the entire foundation of the Web is IT-based.
- Referral authorizations: This was rated as essential by 38% and important by 42%.
- Processing pharmaceutical information: This was rated as essential by 31% and important by 53%.
Surprisingly, electronic communication with patients, including e-mail, is not perceived as essential to physicians—only 13% reported it as being so. Fifty-three percent said e-mail with patients is
important; 34% said it is not important.
Despite the perceived importance of Internet applications, just 7% of respondents have adopted
automated prescribing systems. Respondents cited the lack of uniform standards for health information and the inability of current health information applications to communicate among
themselves as the greatest barriers to implementation of Internet-enabled services.
The "lack of system compatibility across health-care organizations" is a critical barrier to the
realization of the full potential of Internet-enabled systems in medicine, according to 97% of physician leaders surveyed.
Not surprisingly, 93% of physicians and physician leaders cite the need for industry-wide agreement on standards as the effective way to bring about change. More than 90% also said that the lack of
compatibility between systems across health-care organizations is a barrier that prevents organizations from using Internet-enabled applications or services. About 58% of respondents said
that the lack of compatibility is a major barrier.
As many other industries have discovered, standardization is important in successful implementation
of electronic communication systems. Physicians realize that to maximize the technology, communications barriers must be reduced.
However, many respondents believe this is possible—84% said agreement on standards is the preferred way to bring about universal use of the Internet.
Industry-wide agreement on standards leading to market-based competition meeting physicians' needs is the best method of encouraging large numbers of physicians to adopt Internet-enabled
technology, said 53% of respondents. The next most preferred method is standards set by industry associations, cited by 18% of respondents.
Getting practices to use Internet-enabled applications and services might be a matter of the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) requiring it, said 87% of respondents, including 72% who say
that such requisites would prompt rapid conformation.
However, forming a government-funded organization aimed at facilitating the adoption of Internet
technology was only seen as very effective by 23% of respondents. Such a plan was called "somewhat effective" by 53% of respondents. Twenty-four percent said that system would be "not
effective"—the highest total of "not effective" tallies of all suggested solutions.
Nearly 80% of respondents said that faster claims payment and higher reimbursements would be very
valuable to their organizations. Lower administrative costs were cited by 71% of respondents as a benefit that their organizations could realize from using Internet-enabled applications. About 60% of
respondents said their organizations would benefit from lower medical supply costs.
On the patient service side, 72% of respondents said their organizations would be able to provide
better patient care through earlier diagnosis and better coordination. Sixty-eight percent said that Internet-enabled applications could help them reduce prescription error, while 66% said the Internet
would help them spend more time with patients. Sixty percent said they could see more patients.
The big key to increased capability, once again, is the move to standardization of the Health Care
Internet and other medical communications.
This survey was conducted of 215 physicians and physician leaders in medical practice organizations
with at least 25 physicians. The surveys were done online using random samples drawn from the AMA Group Practice File and the Physicians List.
We will look at exactly how physicians are using the Internet in the next Tech Talk column.
