Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2018 Oct;14(5):374-381.
doi: 10.1016/j.jpurol.2018.04.033. Epub 2018 Jun 9.

"Minimally invasive research?" Use of the electronic health record to facilitate research in pediatric urology

Vijaya M Vemulakonda  1 , Ruth A Bush  2 , Michael G Kahn  3
Affiliations
Review

"Minimally invasive research?" Use of the electronic health record to facilitate research in pediatric urology

Vijaya M Vemulakonda et al. J Pediatr Urol. 2018 Oct.

Abstract

Background: The electronic health record (EHR) was designed as a clinical and administrative tool to improve clinical patient care. Electronic healthcare systems have been successfully adopted across the world through use of government mandates and incentives.

Methods: Using electronic health record, health information system, electronic medical record, health information systems, research, outcomes, pediatric, surgery, and urology as initial search terms, the literature focusing on clinical documentation data capture and the EHR as a potential resource for research related to clinical outcomes, quality improvement, and comparative effectiveness was reviewed. Relevant articles were supplemented by secondary review of article references as well as seminal articles in the field as identified by the senior author.

Findings: US federal funding agencies, including the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the National Institutes of Health, and the Food and Drug Administration have recognized the EHR's role supporting research. The main approached to using EHR data include enhanced lists, direct data extraction, structured data entry, and unstructured data entry. The EHR's potential to facilitate research, overcoming cost and time burdens associated with traditional data collection, has not resulted in widespread use of EHR-based research tools.

Conclusion: There are strengths and weaknesses for all existing methodologies of using EHR data to support research. Collaboration is needed to identify the method that best suits the institution for incorporation of research-oriented data collection into routine pediatric urologic clinical practice.

Keywords: Comparative effectiveness; Electronic health record; Health information technology; Surgical outcomes.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

CONFLICT OF INTEREST

The authors have no financial relationships relevant to this work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Figure 1
Figure 1
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Jha AK, Doolan D, Grandt D, Scott T, Bates DW. The use of health information technology in seven nations. [cited 2018 Jan 23];Int J Med Inform [Internet] 2008 Dec;77(12):848–54. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18657471. - PubMed
    1. Anderson JG, Vagnoni E. Social, ethical and legal barriers to e- health. [cited 2018 Jan 23];Int J Med Inform [Internet] 2017 Mar;76(5–6):480–3. Available from: http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0959652617306297. - PubMed
    1. Embi PJ, Hebert C, Gordillo G, Kelleher K, Payne PRO. Knowledge management and informatics considerations for comparative effectiveness research: a case-driven exploration. [cited 2013 Nov 25];Med Care [Internet] 2013 Aug;51(8 Suppl 3):S38–44. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23793050. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Danciu I, Cowan JD, Basford M, Wang X, Saip A, Osgood S, Shirey- Rice J, Kirby J, Harris PA. Secondary use of clinical data: The Vanderbilt approach. [cited 2017 Dec 20];J Biomed Inform [Internet] 2014 Dec;52:28–35. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24534443. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Brown JS, Kahn M, Toh S. Data quality assessment for comparative effectiveness research in distributed data networks. [cited 2013 Nov 29];Med Care [Internet] 2013 Aug;51(8 Suppl 3):S22–9. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23793049. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types