title: Health information technology and physicians' perceptions of healthcare quality.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the relationship between the use of health information technology (HIT) and physician perceptions of providing high-quality care and to determine whether this relationship has changed over time.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used 2 waves of longitudinal data from the Community Tracking Study Physician Surveys, 2000-2001 and 2004-2005.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three measures of HIT were examined: a binary variable measuring the use of at least 1 type of HIT, a continuous variable measuring the total number of HIT types, and a binary variable measuring use of all 5 HIT types related to "meaningful use" of HIT as defined by Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Three multivariate models were estimated to study the effect of each HIT measure on physicians' perception of providing high-quality care. Individual fixed-effects estimation also was used to control for individual time-invariant factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using at least 1 type of HIT significantly enhanced physicians' perception of providing high-quality care in 2000-2001, but not in 2004-2005. The marginal effect of adding 1 extra HIT type was positive and statistically significant in both periods. The association between using all 5 HIT types related to meaningful use and perceived quality was statistically significant in 2000-2001, but not in 2004-2005.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Health information technology has become a multifunctional system and appears to have enhanced physicians' perception of providing high-quality care. Physicians' perceptions of medical care quality improved as the number of HIT types used increased. This study supports more extensive use of HIT in physician practices.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Systems, Management, and Policy, Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Denver, Aurora, CO 80045, USA. hai.fang@ucdenver.edu
authors.forename: Hai
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Karen L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Peifer
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Rizzo
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008490:Medical Informatics; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D011787:Quality of Health Care; D014481:United States