"The Electronic Health Record (EHR) is an electronic patient record that resides in a system specifically designed to support users by providing accessibility to complete and accurate data, alerts and reminders, clinical decision support systems, links to scientific knowledge, and other aids. [ASTM E-1384 2001] Since 1991 when the EHR was recognized as a critical component for healthcare by the Institute of Medicine (Ref A3), special efforts have been made to put in place the incentives for healthcare to adopt and actively use information technology to support its activities. This section of the Web site will explore the history. the issues and the significance of the developments that are leading to the introduction and use of the EHR in healthcare.

The included pages in this section depict several model developmental systems, well documented in the literature, largely conducted from federal funds by the major departments with a healthcare role: Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) earlier Department of Health Education and Welfare (DHEW), via its National Center for Health Services Research and Development (NCHSRD) - now Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), Department of Defense (DoD), Department of Veterans Affairs  (DVA) - earlier the Veteran’s Administration (VA). The large number of other projects conducted at this time, and later, are listed in the Bibliography Segment of this site. The following EHR Overview sitemap diagram will help the viewer spot areas of particular interest.