More than half of US hospitals have at least a basic EHR, but stage 2 criteria remain challenging for most.

The national effort to promote the adoption and meaningful use of electronic health records (EHRs) is well under way. However, 2014 marks an important transition: For many hospitals, penalties will be assessed in fiscal year 2015 for failing to meet federal meaningful-use criteria by the end of fiscal year 2014. We used recent data from the American Hospital Association Annual Survey of Hospitals--IT Supplement to assess progress and challenges. EHR adoption among US hospitals continues to rise steeply: 59 percent now have at least a basic EHR. Small and rural hospitals continue to lag behind their better resourced counterparts. Most hospitals are able to meet many of the stage 2 meaningful-use criteria, but only 5.8 percent of hospitals are able to meet them all. Several criteria, including sharing care summaries with other providers and providing patients with online access to their data, will require attention from EHR vendors to ensure that the necessary functions are available and additional effort from many hospitals to make certain that these functionalities are used. Policy makers may want to consider new targeted strategies to ensure that all hospitals move toward meaningful use of EHRs.

Examining the effect of EVS spending on HCAHPS scores: a value optimization matrix for expense management.

Using the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HCAHPS) survey the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' Value-Based Purchasing program has now linked patient care experience rating to hospital revenue reimbursement, thereby establishing a key relationship between revenue cycle management and the patient experience. However, little data exist on the effect of hospital resource spending on patient HCAHPS ratings. This article examines environmental services (EVS) expenses and HCAHPS ratings on hospital cleanliness and overall patient experience ratings to determine how these variables are related. No linear relationship between EVS expense spending and HCAHPS ratings was found, but post hoc analysis identified a matrix that differentiated on hospital cleanliness ratings and overall EVS spending. A value score was calculated for each quadrant of the matrix, and it was determined that organizational value derives from management of expense spending rather than pursuit of high HCAHPS scores. A value optimization matrix is introduced, and its four quadrants are described. With increased emphasis on subjective patient experience measures attached to financial consequences, leaders in the healthcare industry must understand the link between expense management and HCAHPS performance. This study has shown that effective operations are derived from the efficient use of resources and are supported by strong leadership, strategic management, and a culture of patient-centered achievement. The capacity of healthcare organizations to identify their unique costs-to-outcomes balance through the value optimization matrix will help provide them with a means to ensure that optimal value is extracted from all expense spending.