Health information technology

Research Products & Journal Articles

Browse the full list of research publications on this topic completed by the Rural Health Research Centers.

Products – Freely accessible products include policy briefs, fact sheets, full reports, chartbooks, and interactive data websites.

Journal Articles – Articles in peer-reviewed journals may require a subscription or affiliation with a subscribing library. For these publications, Gateway lists the article citation, a brief summary, a link to additional information and access to the full-text of the article, if available.

2021

Higher Electronic Health Record (EHR) Functionality Lowers Urban Hospital Costs but Rural Impacts Are Minimal
Policy Brief
Center for Economic Analysis of Rural Health
Date: 09/2021
Increases in Electronic Health Records (EHRs) functionality are associated with reductions in total hospital costs, driven mainly by lower outpatient costs. However, improvements in EHR functionality do not seem to significantly reduce costs for rural hospitals.

2016

Health Information Exchange: A Strategy for Improving Access for Rural Veterans in the Maine Flex Rural Veterans Health Access Program
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 05/2016
This paper reports on the design and implementation of a first-in-the-nation project to expand rural veterans' access to healthcare by establishing a bi-directional connection between Maine's statewide health information exchange (HIE) and Veterans Administration facilities and centers.
Pilot Testing a Rural Health Clinic Quality Measurement Reporting System
Policy Brief
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 02/2016
More than 4,000 Rural Health Clinics (RHCs) serve the primary care needs of rural communities. Unfortunately, the Rural Health Clinic Program is plagued by a lack of data participating clinics. This reports on the results with a focus on assessing the feasibility and utility of the reporting system and quality measures for the participating RHCs.

2015

Access to Health Information Technology Training Programs at the Community College Level
Policy Brief
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 11/2015
Successful implementation of health information technology (HIT) in rural areas depends on a well-trained HIT workforce, and community colleges are key in producing this workforce. This study examined HIT workforce development programs in community colleges to find their strengths and needs.
Adoption and Use of Electronic Health Records by Rural Health Clinics: Results of a National Survey
Policy Brief
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 09/2015
This study reports the extent of electronic health record implementation and use in a randomly selected sample of 1,497 rural health clinics surveyed in 2013.
Hospital Views of Factors Affecting Telemedicine Use
Policy Brief
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 04/2015
This brief expands upon previous research by examining hospital-based use of telemedicine by determining the type of use by hospitals, whether it be providing services as a hub or receiving services as a spoke, and then identifying factors from the hospitals' perspectives that affect use.
Rural Health Clinic Readiness for Patient-Centered Medical Home Recognition: Preparing for the Evolving Healthcare Marketplace
Policy Brief
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 02/2015
This policy brief reports findings from a survey of rural health clinics (RHC) that examined their capacity to meet the National Council for Quality Assurance patient-centered medical home requirements and discusses the implications of the findings for efforts to support RHC capacity development.

2014

Health Information Technology Workforce Needs of Rural Primary Care Practices
Journal Article
WWAMI Rural Health Research Center
Date: 07/2014
Assesses electronic health records and heath information technology workforce resources that are needed by rural primary care practices to manage the increasing patient populations.
Integrated Care Management in Rural Communities
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 05/2014
This study reviews the opportunities and challenges reform initiatives under the Affordable Care Act present for rural communities. The study assesses four types of organizational models for delivering integrated care management. Each model has different strengths and drawbacks, weighing for and against implementation in rural areas.
Meaningful Use of the Electronic Health Records by Rural Health Clinics
Maine Rural Health Research Center
Date: 02/2014
This paper identifies the rates of electronic health record adoption among a random national sample of rural health clinics (RHCs) and the extent to which RHCs that have adopted an EHR are likely to achieve Stage 1 meaningful use.

2009

Health Information Technology Policy and Rural Hospitals
Policy Brief
Upper Midwest Rural Health Research Center
Date: 06/2009
This brief summarizes the implementation status of key health information technology (HIT) applications in critical access hospitals and other rural hospitals and discusses policies for encouraging HIT adoption in rural hospitals.

2008

Electronic Health Records Adoption: Rural Providers' Decision-Making Process
Policy Brief
RUPRI Center for Rural Health Policy Analysis
Date: 10/2008
This brief reports findings of a study that examined the decision-making process that small rural physician clinics and hospitals use as they investigate and select an electronic health record system.

2007

Small, Stand-Alone, and Struggling: The Adoption of Health Information Technology by Rural Hospitals
Policy Brief
NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Date: 04/2007
This policy brief reports findings from a national survey of rural hospitals designed to investigate how differences among the hospitals affect their implementation of health information technology.
Small, Stand-Alone, and Struggling: The Adoption of Health Information Technology by Rural Hospitals (Working Paper)
NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Date: 02/2007
This paper reports the full findings from a national survey of rural hospitals designed to investigate how differences among the hospitals affect their implementation of health information technology.

2006

Roadmap for the Adoption of Health Information Technology in Rural Communities
NORC Walsh Center for Rural Health Analysis
Date: 08/2006
This report assists rural providers who are just beginning their investigations into using health information technology and its applicability to their organizations.