Recently, I came across the Measuring What Matters study about about EHRs and how they are deployed in three different cities: New York, Cincinnati and Cleveland. (The project was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation as part of the Bridges to Excellence Program.)

Of particular interest is another project they describe in Iowa, which uses the Allscripts analytics module in 120 clinics across the state.

The report raises some very interesting discussion points and really drives home the interrelationship between EHRs and quality measures in healthcare. I got a lot out of it and hope you do as well.

A summary of the report from the foundation:

"A report from Bridges to Excellence shows that not only are widespread EMR systems being successfully implemented in some communities across the country, they are helping to support performance measurement and quality improvement programs as well. The authors present case studies from the experiences of New York City, Cincinnati and Cleveland in implementing EMR systems...

As participants in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Aligning Forces for Quality initiative, the stories of Cincinnati and Cleveland are also powerful examples of how local stakeholder partnerships can effectively link HIT with efforts to improve and share information on the quality of care.