WASHINGTON – As the federal government pours billions of dollars into the healthcare system to encourage the adoption rate of health information technologies, the Institute of Medicine is about to release a report this week raising concerns about the risks associated with electronic health records.

IOM will make its report, “Health IT and Patient Safety: Building Safer Systems for Better Care,” public on Nov. 10 at a briefing in the nation’s capital.

“The federal government is investing billions of dollars to encourage hospitals and healthcare providers to adopt health information technology so that all Americans can benefit from the use of electronic health records by 2014,” said IOM officials in a statement. “However, concerns about potential harm are emerging as providers increasingly rely on electronic medical records, secure patient portals and other information technologies to deliver care.”

[See also: PwC: Health industry under-prepared to protect privacy.]

IOM, the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences, is an independent, nonprofit organization that works outside of government to provide unbiased and authoritative advice to decision makers and the public. Its soon-to-be-released report on health IT and patient safety will provide an examination of a broad range of health information technologies and recommends actions the government, healthcare providers and technology vendors should take to improve patient safety.

Members from the committee that wrote the report will discuss their recommendations and take questions at a one-hour public briefing starting at 10:30 a.m. EST Thursday, Nov. 10, in Room 100 of the National Academies' Keck Center, 500 5th St. N.W., Washington, D.C. Those who cannot attend may participate through a live audio webcast accessible at http://www.nationalacademies.org.