The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) wants input on the inclusion of patients’ job data in Electronic Health Records (EHR) systems. The Request for Information (RFI) that was announced late last week is seeking public comments on whether EHR systems have data fields for occupation information (such as work status, current industry, employer’s name and address, and current title) and whether clinicians collect such data and incorporate it into the patients’ records.
As a division of the CDC, NIOSH works to promote and protect population health and ensure that public health goals are met through the use of EHRs. The agency is striving to ensure that occupational considerations are taken into account during clinical care and that healthcare professionals understand work-related conditions so that they can identify effective treatment and prevention strategies. The collection and recording of patients’ occupation information does not appear to be widespread at present, and even where it is being collected and recorded in EHRs, that information many not be standardized or coded in a structured manner that would facilitate both clinical decision making and public health surveillance and contribute to improving individual and population healthcare.
A modern, certified EHR system such as McKesson Practice Choice, Lytec MD, or Allscripts MyWay is important to providing excellent healthcare and maximizing a practice’s efficiency. Contact Microwize Technology for further information.