Provider organizations have been able to develop, test, and implement quality-of-care indicators based on data collected from their EHR systems, according to findings from a Commonwealth Fund report.

The report, Performance Measures Using Electronic Health Records: Five Case Studies, looks at how HealthPartners (Minneapolis) utilized its EHR system to compile blood pressure measurements; Park Nicollet Health Services (Minneapolis) developed a composite measure for care of patients with diabetes; Billings Clinic (Billings, Mont.) tested an automatic alert on potential interactions between antibiotics and the anticoagulant warfarin; Kaiser Permanente of the Northwest (Portland, Ore.) used a “natural language” processing tool for counseling about tobacco use; and Geisinger Health System (Danville, Pa.) explored ways of reconciling problem lists and provider-visit notes in the case of high-impact chronic-disease diagnoses.

The Commonwealth Fund is a private foundation based in New York that aims to promote a high performing healthcare system to ensure better access, improved quality, and greater efficiency, it states.