Electronic Health Records

Electronic Health Records (EHR) are a digitized form of a health record, used in health systems to collect, store, edit, and transfer patient information. EHRs provide a universal location of all information and history of a patient regardless of region or facility. EHRs are owned by the patient and allow patients to access and edit his or her information. In the coming years, healthcare systems hope to overtake or work in addition to its paper counterpart by providing a universal location for “virtually every facet of clinical information pertinent to patient care.”

EHRs should not be confused with Electronic Medical Records (EMR), which are a computerized record from a single facility. They are not universally shared and may not allow the patient access to his or her information. However, the EHR relies heavily on EMRs in order to attain patient information and must seek permission from the healthcare facilities.