BLANCHON: Electronic health records

Dear Mr. Blanton: I am a fan of the Whitman Walker Clinic. That is why it disturbs me to hear that the CEO can be so naïve about electronic health records. First of all, why do you even mention the Rand Corporation study? Everyone knows that it was trash. You burned your credibility by the end of the first paragraph. Secondly, you claim that electronic health records are safer for guarding patients’ privacy than paper records. “Secure health IT systems include automatic audit tracking, monitoring who is viewing your medical files, as well as when and where.” OK, Mr. Blanton. Who has viewed the medical files of the 160 million plus electronic medical records that have been fumbled in the last couple of years? How many paper records do you think were fumbled in the last 2000? “It even tracks failed attempts to download files.” Come on, Mr. Blanton. Your best system cannot track successful attempts to download files. Who cares about the failed attempts? Finally, I am a dentist. Electronic health records have nothing to offer my patients but expense and danger. I hope nobody is planning to include my practice in their reckless plans. I would not have electronic health records if they were given away. Darrell K. Pruitt DDS