Katz A, Bogdanovic B, & Soodeen R. (2010). Physician Integrated Network Baseline Evaluation: Linking Electronic Medical Records and Administrative Data. University of Manitoba: Manitoba Centre for Healthcare Policy. Retrieved from:  http://mchp-appserv.cpe.umanitoba.ca/reference/PIN_full_report.pdf

Electronic medical records (EMRs) help family doctors provide better care to their patients. Without these records it’s difficult to measure what kind of care patients receive. Manitoba Health asked researchers at MCHP to look for patterns among groups of patients in the Physician Integrated Network (PIN). The PIN initiative aims to improve patients’ access to doctors and interdisciplinary teams while creating a system to manage information more effectively so doctors can make better decisions. The study found improvements in the use of electronic medical records by helping to define criteria for the use of standard fields. This allows doctors to make better use of their own EMRs and helps manage chronic conditions and the overall health of their patients. Family doctors can use information from EMRs to graph patients’ health by measuring weight, blood pressure, and so on with each visit. The same techniques can be used to monitor chronic conditions such as diabetes and more importantly, measurements can be taken on how patients respond to treatment.