In a June print story on bad documentation practices in electronic health records, Stephen Levinson, MD, warns against poorly designed systems that encourage busy physicians to copy old information forward with a single click, speeding them past performing and documenting care.

Copying forward a previous review of systems without reviewing changes in the patient’s status, for example, is noncompliant and potentially fraudulent, Levinson says. Above all, it is poor care. “The tool has taken away what the doctor is supposed to do, which is to obtain information on the review of systems since the last visit,” he says.

Is there ever an appropriate use of copy forward?

Levinson says yes, with an important caveat. (more…)

Google Health, which previewed in February (see the June print story “The Great PHRontier”), went live with relatively little fanfare on May 19. The launch doesn’t mean that the personal health record service is finalized, says Missy Krasner, Google Health product marketing manager. “We are just at the beginning,” she says. (more…)

The June issue takes a look at the latest in personal health records, with stories on the influx of private business in the market, the standards that can promote PHR use, and the emerging role of personal health information management. (more…)