Blog



Profile image of Julia Adler-Milstein
June 14, 2019
Interview

Technology is an all-encompassing word that can mean many different things depending on who you ask. In healthcare, it could mean new radiological imaging machines or robots that deliver food to patients. One omnipresent piece of technology is the electronic health record (EHR). UCSF uses a software system called Epic as it’s EHR, as do many other hospitals. It is a complex application that is the center of many policy discussions. At UCSF we have many researchers who use EHR data but only a handful who study the EHR itself and its impact on health care delivery and outcomes. I was able to sit down with one such researcher, Julia Adler-Milstein, PhD, who is the Director of the Center for Clinical Informatics and Improvement Research, to learn more about her role in helping shape the national discussion and her own experience as a researcher who studies how clinicians interact with technology and the related policy issues. The interview is lightly edited for clarity and length.