Abstract for: Modeling the Dynamics of Electronic Health Records Adoption in the U.S. Healthcare System

The adoption of Electronic Health Records (EHRs) moves slowly despite a near consensus in the healthcare industry that their use could be a critical factor in addressing quality and cost issues. Barriers and benefits of EHRs, the adoption process, and potential remedies to speed up the process are subject to numerous studies. In this study, a casual loop diagram of the EHR adoption process is developed and discussed. Through this model, factors influencing the process and the relationships between them are examined. The model is intended to be the backbone of future stock-flow models which will provide a test bed to explore an understanding of the EHR adoption process and to evaluate various policy options.