Thanks to the 21st Century Cures Act and wide-spread adoption; it looks like electronic health records (EHRs) are here to stay. And the American Medical Association is giving medical students a head start on this technology, in partnership with the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University School of Medicine, with an EHR training program called the Regenstrief EHR Clinical Learning Platform.
While EHRs may cause some consternation among the medical community, an early introduction to this technology will increase fluency and ease of use as these students enter the workforce. AMA’s group vice-president for medical education, Susan Skochelak, MD, likens students not learning how to use EHRS to students not learning how to use a stethoscope. In 2013, she noted that 33 percent of students were not getting proper training on digital platforms. She goes on to say:
“We believe this platform will help thousands of students better understand the value of the EHR, as well as help them address important issues pertaining to population health, quality improvement, patient safety and social determinants of health.”
Students will familiarize themselves with the health record systems and “care” for virtual patients with real data from Eskenazi Health in Indianapolis. Personal information of patients in that system will be removed using “a sophisticated set of algorithms to remove, or misidentify, personal identifiers to protect identities, according to Regenstrief research scientist Blaine Takesue, MD. Educators will be able to customize the training and track progress with this platform.
This article originally appeared here.