EHRs Help Manage Substance Abuse

The Office of the National Coordinator (ONC) for HIT https://healthit.gov released a data brief July 2020 addressing the use of electronic technologies to help individuals and their providers support better care coordination. When this is achieved, individuals and their providers will be able to more easily manage and exchange treatment records.

In 2017, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) https://samhsa.gov surveyed 13,585 U.S substance abuse treatment centers through the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSATS) on the use of computers and electronic resources to store and exchange treatment records.

The survey data presented results showing variation in the methods used to store and exchange health records across treatment centers. The results provide a baseline to understanding how treatment centers manage client health information and whether or not electronic methods are used.

Specifically, the data presents the following highlights:

  •  Three in ten substance abuse treatment centers use only electronic methods to store and maintain health records
  • Centers that operate and affiliated with hospitals use electronic methods to store records at higher rates than unaffiliated centers
  • Centers operated by the federal government or those centers that operate opioid treatment programs have the highest rates for storing health records electronically
  • Seven in 10 centers operated by the federal government use only electronic methods to store records more than non-federal operated centers
  • Centers operating predominantly through the VA and DOD use only electronic methods to store records which is more than non-federal operated centers.
  • Fewer than one in ten centers nationwide use only electronic methods to store records, 7 in 10 centers operated by the federal government do so
  • There are no large differences across inpatient, outpatient, and residential treatment centers in the use of electronic and paper methods to store and maintain health records
  • Centers that operate an opioid treatment program that store and maintain health records are using electronic methods at a higher rate than centers that do not operate opioid treatment programs
  • One in four substance abuse treatment centers use only paper methods to send and receive client health information

 

Other efforts underway include center education and outreach. ONC provides educational materials and delivers tips for adopting and implementing health IT in behavioral healthcare settings.