In pinning down the reason Canada has been slow to adopt EMRs in an interview with a Canadian newspaper, Richard Alvarez, president and CEO of Canada Health Infoway, pointed to a lack of collaboration among the many stakeholders. He’s absolutely right.
He also referred to the transformative changes as social, rather than technological. This isn't new, of course, but when things go wrong social change and lack of collaboration are often central to the problem whereas the focus during planning and implementation is often on the technology.
The article's author examines real-world successful transformations and highlights the characteristics. One trait is a willingness to work things out between historical antagonists. In the healthcare industry, for example, if the EHR is payer-driven, it would translate into payer and network providers understanding the value of computerized patient information and the need for privacy and security of that information. It would also translate into both sides working for the greater good of improved quality of care and patient safety and a cost-efficient means of providing better care.
Another characteristic is that community organizations, or not-for-profits, are the "engines of social innovation" because they want to drive social change. This makes sense in the context of the healthcare industry. Community organizations often have the trust of their community members. Public or patient trust, as we all know, is critical for EHR adoption. Engaging these organizations in educating the community about the value of EHRs should be on a healthcare system's list of things to do in the early stages of planning an EHR implementation.
Collaboration is the overall key to bringing about social change in any endeavor. In the case of the healthcare industry, it means keeping communications open and clearly defining the big-picture goal. When you focus on a goal that everyone agrees on, you start down the path of real change and transformation.
Photo by Andrew Abogado courtesy of Creative Commons license.
