Electronic health records are expected to lead to significant quality and efficiency improvements in healthcare, but what is often overlooked is the potential impact they could have on the environment. A new report from Kaiser Permanente indicates that they could have a large impact in this area.
Researchers looked at the environmental impact of transitioning to electronic health records at healthcare providers that operate within the Kaiser Permanente system. They reported in the latest issue of Health Affairs that the transition helped these organizations reduce their total carbon footprint by 1.7 million tons.
Additionally, they avoided using 1,044 tons of paper for medical charts each year, cut carbon emissions by replacing some face-to-face meetings with virtual conferences, eliminated the use of harmful chemicals, like silver nitrate, in imaging processing and demonstrated an overall positive impact on the environment.
“Electronic health records can support a more environmentally sound health care sector if they are used to change workflows and care delivery, rather than just a substitute for paper records,” said Jed Weissberg, senior vice president, Hospitals, Quality and Care Delivery Experience, Kaiser Permanente.