The terms electronic health record (EHR), or electronic medical record (EMR), refer to software applications designed for the collection, sharing and storage of patients' health information in a digital format, usually replacing traditional paper records and X-ray films.[1] EHRs may contain a range of data, including demographics,vital signs, age and weight, medical history, medication records and allergies, immunization status, laboratory results, radiology and imaging studies, and, particularly in the U.S., billing information.[2] The records can potentially be shared, either within entities or externally, across health care settings. This occurs via network-connected, enterprise-wide information systems, or the information networks or exchanges of other providers and institutions. Whether this is possible depends upon the degree of integration and interoperability of the information systems. Though initially developed as site-specific applications, they are now mostly distributed and maintained by large software providers. Automation of billing and charge capture, management of health facility logistics and reduced need for transcription of clinical notes are features that have become commonplace, particularly in enterprise solutions for larger facilities.
EHR systems are designed to accurately store data and to capture the state of a patient across time. They reduce the need to track down a patient’s paper medical records and assist in ensuring data is accurate and legible. They may reduce risk of data duplication as there should be only one modifiable file per patient, meaning that the file is more likely up to date. They may decrease risk of lost records, though there are also concerns that medical information is hidden unless specifically accessed by a provider. Due to the digital information being searchable and in a single file, EMR's can be more effective when extracting medical data for the examination of trends and long term changes in a patient. Population-based studies of medical records may also be facilitated by the widespread adoption of EHR's and EMR's.Mgrossmdjd (talk) 18:39, 15 September 2015 (UTC)