Electronic decision-support tools have the potential to improve the quality and efficiency of health care by providing small-practice physicians with patient-specific information when and where it is needed. As the technologies continue to improve and the costs come down, a greater array of decision-support tools are available for small practices and independent physicians.

This 2002 report provides an overview of decision-support tools and includes case examples of physicians in independent practices that are currently using them. The report focuses on support tools that:

• Bring relevant clinical knowledge to the point of care to support decisions about individual patients;
• Assist in managing individual patients by making it easy to assemble all relevant information and to identify the most appropriate interventions; or
• Apply care recommendations across a population of patients by developing appropriate care plans during patient encounters and reaching out to patients for follow-ups to avoid gaps in care.

The report also helps small-practice physicians identify which products would be best for them, decide how to introduce the products into their practices, and obtain financial support for upgrading technology. Case studies describe medical groups and practitioners who are using a wide range of decision-support tools, from online clinical reference tools to complete disease-specific registries.

The complete report is available under Document Downloads below.