Ask HRC: Low-Quality Scans in Electronic Medical Records

A Healthcare Risk Control (HRC) System member recently inquired about situations in which a hospital scans a poor-quality document for inclusion in the electronic medical record (EMR). The end result of such a scan is a poorly scanned document; some hospitals use a stamp to indicate that the original was in poor shape. The HRC member inquired whether ECRI has any knowledge about stamping the scanned document.

The American Health Information Management Association (AHIMA) has several practice briefs that address scanning records. One is "Update: Maintaining a Legally Sound Health Record—Paper and Electronic." According to AHIMA, all scanned documents must be date- and time-stamped for the date it is scanned. In addition, facilities must have policies and procedures concerning quality control for every scanned record. A second practice brief that addresses scanned images is "[Electronic...