Current State of CDS Utilization

This chapter reflects on aspects of experiences with CDS reported on in the preceding chapters of the section, identifying factors that were instrumental to success and those that have held back replication of demonstrated successes. Commercial systems, understandably, have tended by and large to replicate most successful approaches rather than doing primary innovation themselves. The chapter points out that some movement of academically validated approaches into commercial systems has occurred, and the offerings of commercial systems are gaining momentum, particularly under the stimulus of top-down national initiatives such as the HITECH Act of 2009 in the US and the Connecting for Health program in the UK (discussed in other chapters).