US Pharm. 2011;36(2):6.
Edinburgh, Scotland—Despite the general endorsement of e-Health technologies such as e-prescribing and electronic patient records, a new study has found little evidence that these tools actually improve the quality of health care. In a study published in PLoS Medicine, Aziz Sheikh and colleagues from the University of Edinburgh analyzed 53 systematic reviews on the topic. The authors found insufficient evidence to support the cost-effectiveness of these technologies but noted that measuring patient outcomes often takes decades and it may be premature to expect results at this time. “It is vital that future e-Health technologies are evaluated against a comprehensive set of measures, ideally throughout all stages of the technology’s life cycle,” said Sheikh.
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