Personal Health Record
HIMSS defines an ePHR as follows:
An electronic Personal Health Record (“ePHR”) is a universally accessible, layperson comprehensible, lifelong tool for managing relevant health information, promoting health maintenance and assisting with chronic disease management via an interactive, common data set of electronic health information and e-health tools. The ePHR is owned, managed, and shared by the individual or his or her legal proxy(s) and must be secure to protect the privacy and confidentiality of the health information it contains. It is not a legal record unless so defined and is subject to various legal limitations.
HIMSS’ definition is meant to address the immediate and future developmental direction of ePHRs, with the understanding that any ePHR definition is not static and will evolve with future technology advances and further adoption of electronic health records (EHRs)/electronic medical records (EMRs) and ePHRs that will create shifts in the culture surrounding the utilization and demand of ePHR constituents.
Read the complete PHR Definition Position Statement
Latest News:
A Personal Health Record Primer
PHR Steering Committee Chair Person Holly Miller, M.D., M.B.A., published an overview of personal health records at healthcare publisher MDNG's Web site.
Medicare To Launch PHR Pilot in South Carolina
CMS announced it will launch a personal health record project that will connect people with their hospital and physician claims data.
Aetna Helps Patients, Physicians Improve Outcomes with New Online Capabilities
Health care benefit company Aetna announced several new online features and services aimed at physicians which will provide prescribing and clinical decision support through the Web. Consumer PHR tools will also be rolled out to Aetna members later this year.