Is It Finally Time to Put Patients Medical Records Online?
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 22 (HealthDay News) — Although it has been a long time coming, physicians are beginning to consider the Internet an integral part of their practice. For example, instantaneous electronic transmission of a patient’s records from his or her doctor to another part of the country (or the world, for that matter) could be extremely helpful in an emergency. There’s even a trial going on in Florida in which doctors are being reimbursed for online consultations. About 1,000 doctors and 100,000 patients are participating. However, there are still a couple of issues that keep medical professionals from stampeding into cyberspace. First, old habits die hard. Manual record-keeping is as much a part of many doctors’ habits as a cold stethoscope and a lollipop for the kid with the sore throat. Many physicians are comfortable with their record-keeping and see no real reason to change. Second, there’s the larger issue of security on the Web, coupled with an already-suspicious public wh
