EMRs not right for healthcare?

Every industry thinks that they are different and special. If implemented correctly, the benefits are there.

Isn't that exactly why you'd want to automate all extraneous activities? So, the physician and patient can focus on his/her care. This type of thinking is why we're at the "crisis" stage in healthcare. American "Exceptinalism" has nothing on American HC Exceptionalism.

I think Dr.Wilkes provocative comments reflect his subliminal resentment against the people who profit immensely from systematic data acquisition, or perhaps his way of telling that smart intern, "Young fella, you have become too big for your pantaloons, let me put you in place... In my days...!" Today the big Pharma, big insurers and the managed health care sector are really reaping the monetary benefits of EMR. Doctors are paying for it! Are you surprised that the consortium of Pharmaceutical manufacturers want to give prescription writing software "free" to doctors? Back to Dr. Wilkes observations, people who want to fudge can always do so with pen and paper. I agree that dumb guidelines like recanting "10 point review of systems" which automatically qualify for higher payments by the feds or mentioning in writing that you spent 45 minutes with the patient to get a higher level reimbursement need to be critically assessed. EMRs when used properly will help in streamlining flow of information, avoiding redundancy in testing, obviate repetitive documentation, prevent errors from misinterpretation of bad handwriting and YES! let you complete a documentation of encounter in less than 5 minutes. If EMRs are misused, blame the user not the tool. Blaming EMR is like blaming the box-knife industry for 9-11 horrors!