Can You Belize It?
The industry has been touting EHR incentives in the stimulus plan as the way to put health care back on track. But let's be honest, the electronic remedy is going to be a tough pill to swallow. Privacy concerns abound, budgets are stretching thin and some providers just don't want to be bothered. Skeptics see the system on track for an epic and costly failure.
We're not alone. From our northern neighbors to the folks down under, everyone seems to be struggling to get EHRs right. The eHealth Ontario CEO just resigned for questionable spending, and there's continuing uproar in Australia over privacy-or the lack thereof-in the national EHR system.
But catch a plane due South, and the picture changes. Citizens in Belize are enjoying improved access to care through a national EHR system. The developing country has been lauded as a leader in advanced nationwide health care, according to Canada's Telegraph-Journal.
The EHR system improves disease tracking, streamlines patient verification and links doctors even when connectivity is limited. But here's the real kicker: it cost about $500,000-that's $2 a head. It uses open source components, which saves money and makes the system more compatible with providers across the board. (Watch for our June cover story on open source software, in the mail next week!) The country also got financial backing from the Inter American Development Bank and Pan American Health Organization, according to the article, but that makes the feat no less impressive. In fact, Belize will likely become a model for other developing countries to follow, the report said.
So why is it so tough for us? I'm no expert, but in this situation you just can't compare apples to oranges. The U.S. is much larger than Belize, both in geography and population, so any widespread change is bound to be tough. We also might have more demands about what our EHRs should or shouldn't do. For providers, EHR systems run the gamut from bare bones to fancy-schmancy, and if the government mandated a particular one, someone would give lip.
So wait, cross our fingers and hold our breath, we will. EHRs seem pretty inevitable, so let's just hope we find the American version of Belize's success.