Wait, So What Is a PHR Again?

So you might be wondering what a PHR is exactly.  All the acronyms can be a little confusing!  There are three terms you will see being used here on a regular basis: EMR, EHR and PHR.  The three are different entities but are all tied together to create a flow of information. 

An Electronic Medical Record, or EMR, is an electronic health record of an individual created and maintained by licensed physicians and authorized staff from one health care organization.  For instance, the record created by your primary care physician.  If have seen your doctor or their medical assistant walking around with a laptop or an iPad in the past few years, they're keeping your records electronically now instead of in the old bulky manila folder. 

An Electronic Health Record, or EHR, is the collective electronic health record of an individual created, shared and maintained by licensed physicians and authorized staff from multiple health care organizations.  An example of an EHR is if you have start going to a specialist, your specialist can access your EMR from your primary care physician and add to it and your primary physician can see the notes from your specialist.

A Personal Health Record, or PHR, is a collective electronic personal health record of an individual created, shared and maintained by licensed physicians and authorized staff from multiple health care organizations that the patient keeps for their personal use.  The patient is the legal owner of their PHR and has the right to share it with others such as family members.  PHRs can be accessed and managed from web applications called patient portals, where patients may able to communicate with their doctor as well as privately view their medical records.  Patients have the ability to to add their own information to their PHRs, such family history, vaccinations and previous surgeries and illnesses.  PHRs can also be used to track test results such as blood pressure, blood sugar, weight, BMI, cholesterol and triglycerides, which can be beneficial to both you and your physician.