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Evaluation of Stage 3 Meaningful Use Objectives: Analysis in Oklahoma and the District of Columbia

Project Final Report (PDF, 1.11 MB) Disclaimer

Project Details -
Completed

This project was one of four task order contracts awarded under the Evaluation of Stage 3 Meaningful Use (MU) Objectives request for task order (RFTO). The purpose of the RFTO was to fund rapid cycle evaluation studies of the implementation of Stage 3 MU proposed objectives of the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Programs.

This project provided input from providers at two health care organizations to inform the development of nine proposed Stage 3 MU objectives focused on patient engagement, interoperability, and care coordination. The two organizations were Oklahoma Foundation for Medical Quality in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and the Children’s National Medical Center in Washington, DC, both of which care for diverse patient populations, including adults and children in rural and urban settings within both ambulatory and inpatient environments.

The specific objectives of this project were to answer three research questions for each proposed MU objective:

  • How can the evaluated MU objective be improved at the policy level? 
  • What EHR innovations would support meeting the evaluated MU objective? 
  • What will increase the value for hospitals and ambulatory practices implementing the proposed Stage 3 MU objective? 

For each of the nine MU objectives studied, quantitative and qualitative data were synthesized to identify summary findings, informing the development of targeted recommendations for policymakers, EHR vendors, and participating organizations and providers.

The study showed that six of the nine proposed Stage 3 MU objectives are generally being met. For some of the unmet objectives, the ability of the EHR to accurately format and report on the capture and electronic sharing of the data is an obstacle, despite care being provided appropriately. For other unmet objectives, the objectives themselves as currently articulated may not align with usual care and standards of practice.