Daniel Essin, MA, MD

The promise of technology in healthcare has yet to be realized and it will take a paradigm shift to get us there.

When it comes to interoperability, there is a high road and there is a low road. Right now, we’re forcibly getting the low road.

The kind of EHR interoperability envisioned by vendors and regulators will never be achieved and is not practical for healthcare.

It’s up to physicians to make IT work as it should, assisting in the care of a patient. Don’t rely on vendors and government mandates.

When it comes to improving diagnosis in healthcare, the importance of scientific thinking must be stressed. It doesn’t take magic.

A continuing discussion on philosophical books which will enhance critical thinking and communication skills - in healthcare and in life.

The study of Semiotics can be used to help us better understand and use technology to its fullest promise, rather than the evils that it may produce.

In order to thwart the trend of high-cost care for lower quality and improve our health knowledge, we must broaden our critical thinking abilities

The inherent flaws in this doctor’s EHR system has created an ethical dilemma, which he says cannot be solved.

By continuing to use certain programs, including your EHR, you allow access to your data. Here's some guidance keeping your information private.

HIPAA may actually be harmful as it distracts attention and diverts resources away from those actions that might actually improve privacy and security.

After 18 years, the hospital where I see patients is getting an EHR. It's hard for me to see the value for physicians and patients going forward.

When you look for guidance on the sustainability of technology, look to the government. No, not HHS, but instead the U.S. Department of Defense.

Without complainers, there is no incentive to rethink the problem and no one to stumble on an alternative.

I know it is April, but I finally made a New Year's resolution. I will start being proactive about my procrastination.

Like every computer system, each EHR creates its own virtual reality. The danger stems from mistaking this "virtual" reality for actual "reality."

As the pressure on healthcare organizations increases, physicians need to mobilize, find strength in numbers, and take a stand if they want change.

Big data can yield big benefits but, when things go wrong, can create big problems that will forever be beyond the ability of people to anticipate.

Believe it or not, EHRs and Los Angeles County's mental health problem have a lot in common.

The sad fact, when it comes to EHR, is that very few posses the right kind of computer literacy.

An open letter to Congress about interoperability, including some questions it should ask the vendor community.

Massachusetts' effort to tie license renewal to meaningful use of an EHR is a great way to ease the physician shortage.

Look no further than the recent issue of JAMA for evidence that physician mandates are not beneficial, but paternalistic and coercive.

The crises of immigration and drought cannot be solved, only mitigated or accommodated. The EHR crisis, on the other hand, has a solution.

Computer systems will never make good deciders and people will never make good robots.

Understanding the current lack of EHR interoperability is difficult. But perhaps Genesis 11 can help clarify the problem.

As displayed in Dallas, you can't expect EHRs to interoperate when they can't even intra-operate in their current structure.

Anyone that is responsible for patients has had "I told you so" moments. Here are mine when it comes to health IT and EHRs. I hope you take my advice.

The American Medical Association's recommendations to boost EHR usability are touchy-feely, but none really get to the heart of what's wrong with systems.

Apple anticipates that even the best laid plans go awry, so they seek out the failures and fix them using customer support. Why can't EHR vendors do the same?