Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association : JAMIA
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J Am Med Inform Assoc · Jul 2017
Comparative StudyAre informed policies in place to promote safe and usable EHRs? A cross-industry comparison.
Despite federal policies put in place by the Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) to promote safe and usable electronic health record (EHR) products, the usability of EHRs continues to frustrate providers and have patient safety implications. This study sought to compare government policies on usability and safety, and methods of examining compliance to those policies, across 3 federal agencies: the ONC and EHRs, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and avionics, and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and medical devices. Our goal was to identify whether differences in policies exist and, if they do exist, how policies and enforcement mechanisms from other industries might be applied to optimize EHR usability. ⋯ Our analysis highlights important areas of usability and safety policy from other industries that can better inform ONC policies on EHRs.