Why Electronic Case Reporting Is Vital During Pandemics
AHIMA March 18, 2021
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), electronic case reporting (eCR) is the “automated generation and transmission of case reports from an electronic health record (EHR) to public health agencies for review and action. eCR makes disease reporting from healthcare providers to public health faster and easier.”1
Reporting of cases or diseases provides an understanding of occurrences and trends that assists with public health planning efforts, resource allocation, and policymaking. Typically, case reporting, which is required by law to report to state and local public health entities regarding specific diseases and conditions, has been conducted via paper-based methods. Paper-based methods cause several challenges in public health’s ability to report timely data that supports their efforts in conducting...