Oral

There are estimated to be 54 million people with disabilities living in the United States. As a population, those 54 million people face large barriers to maintaining their health and accessing health care, and experience disparate health outcomes compared to their peers who do not have disabilities. The Department of Health and Human Services Office on Disability (OD) and Office of the Surgeon General highlighted these challenges as an urgent public health concern by co-authoring the Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Improve the Health and Wellness of Persons with Disabilities. Health informatics has an enormous role in determining the accessibility and quality of health care for persons with disabilities across the lifespan. It is an integral element in reducing the barriers identified in the Call to Action. Personal and electronic health records will be addressed in relation to care quality and access for persons with disabilities, including new possibilities and partnerships for advancing the health of persons with disabilities through health informatics. Experts from the Federal government, academia, private industry, and consumer advocacy will discuss ways in which health informatics, through personal and electronic health records, are being utilized to better meet the health care needs of persons with disabilities. Audience participation will be sought in this didactic discussion leading toward new ways for participants to understand the evolving policy and market issues of personal and electronic health records as well as engage in the Call to Action. The audience’s questions and the presenters’ responses will provide exciting possibilities for organizations to address health disparities for persons with disabilities through the use of health informatics.

Session Objectives: By exploring the promises and challenges of personal and electronic health records from a variety of perspectives, session attendees will: Objective 1: Understand the goals and messages of the Call to Action and the importance of personal and electronic health records in improving health and health care access for persons with disabilities. Objective 2: Consider new ways to utilize their organizational and professional contacts and resources within the arena of personal and electronic health records as a key health informatics component to further the goals of the Call to Action. Objective 3: Session attendees understand the complex and diverse barriers faced by persons with disabilities in maintaining good health and accessing health care and are motivated to explore the potential of personal and electronic health records to lessen those barriers.

CE Credits: CME, Health Education (CHES), Nursing