Table 2.

Primary Clinical Domains and Spectrum of Health IT Solutions

Area of Health IT Use	Impact on Clinician Workflow
	Minimal/None	Some	Significant
Orders, results, and results management	Results for ordered tests printed or faxed (paper-based)	Online order sets, online results for clinicians of ordered tests	Tools track and follow up preventive care needs, results, and outcomes
Intra-clinic communication	Providers and clinic staff communicate with e-mail, text messages; notes dictated	Clinical tasks assigned electronically, document imaging of paper notes (a.k.a., “Go paperless”)	Multidisciplinary coordinated care; documentation in structured, analyzable format
Patient education and outreach	Practice website with educational materials, automated reminders for appointments	Automatically generated forms/care plans (e.g., asthma action plan)	Clinical care managed between visits (includes goal-setting and tracking)
Inter-clinic coordination	Basic immunization records	Electronic referral paperwork	Referrals managed per electronically reinforced protocols; information exchanges
Medication management	Online drug reference	e-prescribing (with interaction checking), frequently used lists	e-prescribing with diagnosis- and patient-based decision support
Provider education and feedback	Web site links, online clinic policy manuals	Integrated or handheld reference materials, online training	Integrated electronic clinical decision support; report cards, assessments