NEW YORK, Sept. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Point of Care (POC) technologies -- primarily Electronic Medical Records (EMR), Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), and Electronic Prescribing (eRx) -- play a key role in improving the US health care system. Yet a new study from Manhattan Research, LLC (http://www.manhattanresearch.com/), a healthcare marketing information and services firm, finds that adoption of these technologies is in danger of stalling unless current barriers are addressed and new drivers identified.
The study finds that:
* Only 140,000 U.S. practicing physicians are using EMR to document
clinical data today, although another 283,000 are interested in using
EMR in the future. EMR use and adoption is expected to moderately grow
through 2006.
* Today, 235,400 U.S. practicing physicians use a PDA for professional
and other uses, and about half of the non-PDA users express some level
of interest in future PDA use. That said, PDA adoption by U.S.
physicians is expected to experience limited growth through 2006.
* Just 43,800 U.S. practicing physicians use electronic prescribing, but
the vast majority is interested in future use. Physician adoption of
eRx is expected to experience significant growth through 2006.
However, considerable challenges remain in this market sector -- namely
demonstrating the value to the end user physician.
Many physician practices are skeptical about the true benefit these technologies will bring, and the study finds that funding for implementing and maintaining these programs has been scarce. The return on time and cost investment is not readily apparent or even lucrative for many smaller practices and older physicians. Yet as tech-savvy young physicians move into the market, legislation begins to mandate technology adoption and new venture capital floods this space, POC technology adoption may accelerate.
"We're at a critical juncture where incorporating information technology at the point of care is crucial to our hopes of moving health care into the digital age" says Erika Fishman, Senior Analyst at Manhattan Research. "We must work to break down barriers of skepticism among physicians by strategically targeting and positioning physician champions. Coupled with the new incentives (i.e., mandates) issued as part of the Medicare Modernization Act, this may be just the 'shot in the arm' needed to encourage greater physician adoption of POC technologies".
Select topics explored in the POC Research Module include: physician adoption of POC technologies; physician adoption by age, adoption by practice size, future interest in POC technologies, stratification by patient and prescription profile; adoption of other technology applications such as electronic detailing and CME, Internet adoption and use; and other mobile devices used at the point of care.
Complete analysis and findings are immediately available for purchase. For more information on accessing this analysis, contact Nicole D'Angelo at ndangelo@manhattanresearch.com or 212.255.7799.
Attend a free webinar discussing the research module on October 4 @ 12:00 EST. Details and registration available at http://www.manhattanresearch.com/poc.htm
ABOUT MANHATTAN RESEARCH, LLC
Manhattan Research, based in New York, helps healthcare and life sciences organizations adapt, prosper, and maximize opportunities in the networked economy. The company seeks to serve as a strategic positioning system for clients, helping them use industry expertise, robust proprietary data sets, and insight to maximize the value of their overall business strategy. Manhattan Research's clients include global pharmaceutical and biotech companies, nonprofit health organizations, technology vendors, health content providers, and health plans.
Manhattan Research, LLCCONTACT: Nicole D'Angelo of Manhattan Research, LLC, +1-212-255-7799,ndangelo@manhattanresearch.com
