New York State is going to improve its access to Electronic Medical Records (EMR) thanks to efforts 
made by two the federally designated healthcare IT regional extension centers (RECs) of the city. Today, the New York eHealth Collaborative and the NYC Regional Electronic Adoption Center for Health (NYC REACH) are working to provide EMR to other parts of the state of New York. Among the included regions of the state are Long Island, Syracuse, Buffalo, Binghamton, Albany and Tarrytown.
David Whitlinger, executive director of the New York eHealth Collaborative, said that a marketing and education campaign will take place first in order to provide New York's doctors with EMR. The objective of the campaign is to assist healthcare members, at least 10,000 primary care providers, to replace paper records with digital EMR throughout the next two years. The centers carrying out the efforts for the change are two of 60 at work across the United States. Both centers are targeting 100,000 physicians who have not used EMR till now.
Amanda Parsons, MD, assistant commissioner of the Primary Care Information Project at the New York City Health Department, said "With one of the nation's largest healthcare systems, New York State is leading the way for the adoption of electronic health records (EHR)," she added "We deploy EHR technology to improve healthcare and save lives across our health care system," while Whitlinger said "The federal subsidies supporting adoption of EHRs will be available only for a couple of years, so it's important for primary care providers in New York to act now to take advantage of these programs while there are still funds available," he added "These free summits are a great way for clinicians to learn more about all the resources available to help them implement electronic health records in their practices. The sooner they start using EHRs to enhance patient care, the more stimulus funds they can earn."
The latest reports are mentioning that the adoption of EMR is progressing rapidly, with an expected 27% of physicians using some type of EHR, compared with 17% in 2007 and 21% in 2008. Parsons commented "More than two-thirds of U.S. ambulatory physicians work in solo or small group practices, and this program will help providers in small practice settings, community health centers, public hospitals, and settings that treat underserved populations implement electronic health records to enhance care for their patients," she added "Our team of experts can provide valuable hands-on assistance to providers every step of the way, from evaluating and selecting an electronic health record system to implementing it most effectively to improve patient care and qualify for federal funds."
Rachel Block, deputy commissioner for the New York State Office of Health Information Technology, commented "It's crucial for healthcare providers to learn how to leverage electronic health records to improve patient care, and we are committed to giving them the concrete guidance they will need to do this most effectively," she added "EHRs will help improve quality of care for New Yorkers while boosting efficiency and enhancing patient satisfaction. Today's health care consumers expect and deserve to receive care that is safe, convenient and tailored to their needs."
