What will AHRQs health IT initiative achieve?
In addition to stimulating the growth of health IT, the initiative is designed to elicit the greatest possible amount of information about real-world experience with health IT. This information will help providers who are considering investing in health IT, as well as policymakers seeking to encourage health IT investment. AHRQ will also be a trusted source of information and technical assistance for health care providers as they launch and use health IT systems. The projects funded by AHRQ’s initiative constitute a real-world laboratory for examining health IT at work. They cover a variety of health IT applications and examine the impact of health IT in specific clinical settings and for specific health conditions, thus providing a cross-sectional view of health IT. The projects will be evaluated to identify both barriers and successful approaches to health IT implementation, and to determine providers’ and patients’ satisfaction with the outcomes. AHRQ will also evaluate costs and be
