Survey: Healthcare professionals find return investment lacking for electronic records

While healthcare professionals are optimistic about potential benefits of data analytics, many find electronic health record (EHR) systems have had a low return on investment, according to a survey by analytics company Health Catalyst. The survey was conducted during the 2017 Healthcare Analytics Summit (HAS). 

“The divergent views of the two technologies likely reflects the industry’s abrupt shift away from data collection and toward data analysis as healthcare transitions from fee-for-service to value-based reimbursement,” according to Health Catalyst.

An overwhelming majority (83%) of the 1,100 respondents said that analytics are extremely important for the future of healthcare and population health. The remaining respondents replied that analytics is very (14%) or moderately important (3%).

When looking at the future of analytics, HAS keynote speaker Tom Davenport lists four levels of adoption: artisanal analytics (basic), big data (visual analytics), the data economy (machine learning), and cognitive analytics (deep learning).

Despite the optimism for analytics, many respondents rated their return on EHR systems as poor (42%), mediocre (29%), and terrible (19%). However, 10% noted a positive return on investment.