From record keeping to scientific research: obstacles and opportunities for research with electronic health records
Scholte, R.A.; Opmeer, B.C.; Ploem, M.C.
Nederlands Tijdschrift Voor Geneeskunde 161: D1738
2017
ISSN/ISBN: 1876-8784 PMID: 29192569 Document Number: 691740
As a result of increasing digitisation of medical record keeping, electronic health records (EHRs) are an attractive source for data reuse. However, such record-based research is still suffering from poor quality of data stored in EHRs. Lack of consent for reuse of data also plays an impeding role, especially in retrospective record-based research. That said, increasing cooperation between healthcare institutions and current attention for EHR organisation also offer opportunities for record-based research. Patient data can be recorded in more standardised ways and in increasingly harmonised EHRs. In addition, if healthcare institutions were to establish a generic consent procedure - preferably with national scope - the potential of EHRs for scientific research could be exploited in considerably better ways.