New Data Concludes EMR Adoption On the Rise

January 20, 2012 by Sarah Swidron

The Centers for Disease Control’s National Center for Health Statistics released its 2011 EMR adoption report outlining trends in the U.S. regarding electronic medical records adoption. The study concluded that 57% of office-based physicians have implemented EMR systems in their practice, up from just 50.7% in 2010. 

The study also showed that 52% of respondents planned to apply for federal EMR incentive payments, up from 41% in 2010, showing that federal incentives may have an impact in EMR system adoption rates. 

The systems being used by Physicians who responded to the survey are described as being of two tiers. The first tier includes basic systems that are able to record and store patient history and demographics, compile health issue lists, clinical notes, medication and allergy lists, view images, and order prescriptions online. The other tier includes fully functional electronic health records systems, which include all of the basic functions, plus expanded capabilities. 

The adoption rates for basic electronic medical records systems increased nearly 9%, from 24.9% in 2010 to 33.8% in 2011. This significant jump in the most basic systems, coupled with the increase in adoption of EMR systems overall, show that the efficiencies created by these systems, coupled with federal incentives, are leading Doctors’ offices to adopt these new technologies at increasing rates. 

As the electronic medical records landscape changes, healthcare marketing organizations will tailor their software offerings to a greater number of Doctors’ offices, incorporating both basic and advanced features in order to create solutions for Doctors of every kind. 

Being able to effectively and efficiently target offices that have and haven’t adopted EMR technology will be instrumental in creating marketing programs for EMR companies going forward. Vetting a data partner whose information is complete and comprehensive will create a distinct advantage for EMR software companies going forward. 

Healthcare Data Solutions offers a variety of healthcare marketing lists, including electronic medical records adoption lists, which allow medical marketing organizations to accurately target a variety of healthcare segments, from doctors to pharmacists to dentists and beyond. To learn more about our electronic medical records adoption lists, or any of our healthcare marketing data, contact Healthcare Data Solutions today.

Top 5 Medical Apps from Big Pharma for iPad

December 21, 2011 by Sarah Swidron

The iPad is changing the way that healthcare marketing professionals interact with doctors. While the nature of the pharmaceutical sales call adapts to the use of this new tool and the form in which the pharmaceutical detail is consumed changes, doctors will come to expect that, in addition to communicating the benefits and research behind a new product, pharmaceutical companies will develop tools that assist them in their day-to-day practice. 

Big Pharma has taken notice of this trend and was among the first to begin the development of apps that not only influence a prescriber to choose one medication or treatment over another, but also provide value to healthcare providers and patients in the exam room. Borrowing heavily from the online realm, this form of content marketing – providing valuable information free of charge – has found a home with Big Pharma and will soon be the go-to tool for any savvy healthcare marketing organization.

Below is a sampling of 5 iPad apps from some of the biggest names in the pharmaceutical industry that are changing the way that doctors and patients interact.

1. The Merck Manual: Professional Edition – The world’s most widely distributed medical reference book has gone digital for the iPad. Renowned for its focus and digestibility, the Merck Manual has been the go-to reference for many health professionals for years. The professional edition for iPad offers users access to the content anywhere (no internet needed), an intuitive browsing system, access to the full index of articles, browsing history and more.
2. Novartis Oncology Medical Information – With this easy-to-use app, doctors can view and download standard response documents for a variety of oncological inquiries. The quick and comprehensive search function allows doctors to find and email documents with the touch of a finger, as well as submit medical inquires directly to Novartis right from the application.
3. MedTrust/GSK Oncology Cancer Trials – This revolutionary app from GlaxoSmithKline and MedTrust Online provides doctors with lightning-fast mobile access to registered clinical trials information. With the ability to quickly search by cancer type, gender, age, trial status, study type and more, oncologists can quickly find – and then map – the nearest clinical trials and share them with patients in any setting.
4. AZ Quest Cardiovascular Clinical Trials – Similar to the oncology app above, but tailored for cardiologists, the clinical trials app from AstraZeneca UK allows doctors to search cardiovascular clinical trials, email information and stay up to date on developments in cardiology with a live cardio news feed.
5. Johnson & Johnson’s My Pregnancy Today – One of the most downloaded pregnancy apps available, My Pregnancy Today educates mothers-to-be on the progress of their pregnancy day by day, offering the ability to see high-resolution photos, how-to videos, nutrition guides, progress trackers and more from one all-inclusive pregnancy app.