Characteristics of residential care communities that use electronic health records

Residential care communities' (RCCs) use of electronic health records (EHRs) has the potential to improve communication and facilitate care coordination. This study describes the use of, and examines characteristics associated with, any type of EHR system among RCCs in the United States, nationally and by Census division.

This study examined organizational and geographic characteristics, as well as resident case-mix in association with the use of EHRs among RCCs.

Data from the 2012 National Study of Long-Term Care Providers were used for the analyses. Of 4694 sampled RCCs that completed the questionnaire, 3987 cases with complete data were included in the study.

About 20.2% of RCCs used any type of EHR system and 3.1% used EHRs that had 6 selected computerized capabilities to meet this study's definition for a basic EHR system. Compared with the national rate of 20.2%, a higher percentage of RCCs in the following Census divisions used some type of an EHR system: New England (23.2%), East North Central (26.3%), and West North Central (32.9%). Larger size, being chain affiliated, owned by other organizations or part of a continuing care retirement community, and geographic location were independently associated with the use of any EHRs among RCCs.

As RCCs serve increasingly less healthy and more disabled residents, improved communication and effective care coordination among RCC staff and across different care settings are critical. The estimates presented in this study can be used to establish a baseline for monitoring trends in EHR use among RCCs.