Opinion: EHRs are tools of Big Brother driving physicians away from medicine

Twila Brase—the president of the Citizens’ Council for Health Freedom and healthcare policy advisor to the Heartland Institute, a libertarian thinktank—thinks electronic health records (EHRs) cause plenty of problems for physicians and patients. They contribute to burnout, distraction and inefficiencies.

But another gripe with the large-scale adaptation of EHR systems centers on how the collect information. The move, according to Brase in an op-ed on The Hill, is a government initiative to exert control over patients and physicians from inside the examination room.

“Today’s EHR is not what patients think it is,” Brase wrote. “It’s not a computerized version of a paper medical record. It’s a data-collecting surveillance system imposed by Congress for purposes that have nothing to do with patient care and everything to do with outsider control of the exam room.”

See the full opinion piece at the link below.

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Nicholas Leider, Managing Editor

Nicholas joined TriMed in 2016 as the managing editor of the Chicago office. After receiving his master’s from Roosevelt University, he worked in various writing/editing roles for magazines ranging in topic from billiards to metallurgy. Currently on Chicago’s north side, Nicholas keeps busy by running, reading and talking to his two cats.

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