Personal Health Records and Electronic Health Records: Navigating the Intersections

Publication Date: November 2007

Publisher: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Author(s):

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Abstract:

On Sept. 28 and 29, 2006, public and private sector professionals convened to discuss ways to better integrate personal health records and electronic health (medical) communications and records. This report summarizes discussion points and themes from the roundtable meeting, which was sponsored by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, American Medical Informatics Association, Kaiser Permanente Institute for Health Policy and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Roundtable participants identified the transformative potential of integrated PHRs, while also recognizing the factors and barriers that impede integrated PHR adoption. While there has been a welcome expansion of research on the use of PHRs and PHR systems, the roundtable participants acknowledged the need for additional research and continued development.

Serving one of the primary goals of this roundtable meeting, participants worked to identify a framework for action to move integrated PHRs closer to the health care mainstream. Key areas the roundtable concluded deserved attention:

* Identifying and understanding the applications and devices that hold the greatest transformative potential.
* Evaluating models of care delivery that are integrated with PHRs and PHR systems.
* Continuing to develop integrated PHRs as a promising model for health communications and care.