EHR sharing of laboratory results shows significant reduction in patient mortality scores associated with pneumonia

Using EHRs to share laboratory results with other hospitals within a system is associated with significant reductions in heart failure and pneumonia mortality scores, according to a study in The American Journal of Managed Care. Results showed a statistical significance of a .24 reduction in pneumonia mortality scores and a .19 reduction in patient heart failure.

The report examined the CMS Hospital Compare data scores from 2013 and 2014 to evaluate 30-day patient mortality and readmissions for pneumonia and heart failure. Additional hospital-specific data from the 2012 and 2013 AHA Annual Survey Database and the AHA IT Supplement was considered. The report ranked hospitals on a scoring system that used two-sided P values to assess statistical significance.

The average hospital score for 30-day patient mortality for patients with heart failure was reported as 11.86 and 22.33 for 30-day readmissions. For pneumonia patients, the score was reported as 11.78 for patient mortality and 17.13 for 30-day readmissions.

Findings showed that while most hospitals (72%) share radiology reports internally with hospitals in their system, only 36% shared the same reports externally. Similarly, 81% of hospitals share laboratory reports internally, while 37% share laboratory results through their EHR to hospitals outside their system.

Connecting these findings, the study found that hospitals sharing radiology reports through EHR systems internally were associated with a .22 reduction in mortality scores for pneumonia. However, sharing of radiology reports through EHR systems with outside hospitals were linked to a higher heart failure mortality score of .26.

Internal laboratory report sharing led to a .19 reduction in heart failure and a .24 reduction in mortality scores associated with pneumonia. However, sharing laboratory results with hospitals outside their system was associated with a .26 increase in heart failures.