The Central Mass/MetroWest Health Care Resource Guide • 2014 – 2015
7
Welcome to
the Oasis at Dodge Park
A Revolutionary Alzheimer's and
Dementia Residential Care Facility for
the elderly in Central Massachusetts
Coming Fall 2015
Bringing life to those we serve.
1 0 2 R a n d o l p h R o a d , W o R c e s t e R • at t h e s i t e o f t h e o l d o d d f e l l o W s h o m e
The changing health care
landscape in Central
Massachusetts
e Affordable Care Act (ACA),
which was signed into law nearly five
years ago, is reshaping the health care
landscape, prompting a number of
significant changes intended to im-
prove patient care, reduce medical
costs and enhance the overall health
of the American public.
While the federal legislation has
produced positive outcomes – for
example, the Rand Corp. estimates
a net gain of 9.3 million American
adults with health care coverage from
September 2013 to March 2014 – the
law also presents challenges for pro-
viders, hospital systems and con-
sumers. In September, the Worcester
2025 Health Care Summit explored
recent changes and speculated on the
industry's future.
Technology trends
Several of the most significant
impacts on health care today come
from technological advances. Con-
sider medical records, which in the
past consisted of paper documents in
a patient's chart, used primarily for
billing. at meant a high probability
of prescribing duplicate tests, con-
flicting medications and inappropri-
ate procedures, all of which compro-
mise patient care. Today, electronic
health records (EHR) are becoming
prevalent across health care systems
and in smaller private practices.
A joint study from the Agency
for Healthcare Research and Qual-
ity (AHRQ) and the National Center
for Health Statistics reports that ap-
proximately 34.8 percent of office-
based physicians had implemented
EHR systems in 2007. But by 2012,
that number jumped to 71.8 percent;
a year later, 78 percent. Also, in 2013,
59 percent of hospitals had adopted
some type of EHR system, the study
revealed.
What's driving the higher levels of
adoption? Money, for one. A 2011 ar-
ticle in Healthcare Financial Manage-
ment cited an increase in revenue for
hospitals of between $37 million and
$59 million over five years, in addi-
tion to incentive payments.
Today, the EHR serves as a central
depository where all providers can
access such information as progress
notes, medical test results, diagnoses,
procedures, medications and changes
Dr. John D. Halamka, CIO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
and Harvard Medical School
continued on page 8
