Professor Stephen Parente

These researchers are evaluating the impact of health information technology (HIT) systems on the demand for hospital inpatient services by assessing changes in patient hospital choices related to hospital HIT adoption. They calculate the magnitude of the impact that HIT systems have on a patient’s hospital choice, and evaluate the economic implications of the changes in patients’ hospital choices. The analysis employs numerous data sources including multiple years of Medicare claims data, the American Hospital Association annual survey of hospitals, and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Analytics Database. Combing this data over multiple years will allow identification of the specific effect of HIT on patients’ choices. This research makes two important contributions to the health services research literature and will be valuable for future health policy debates. First, the demand analysis complements the existing supply side analyses and allows for future estimates of the impact HIT on healthcare markets to be more complete and dynamic. Second, an understanding of the role of HIT on the market for healthcare will allow policy makers and the healthcare industry to make more informed decisions regarding optimal HIT adoption and implementation strategies.