Clinical research using an information system: the multicenter perioperative outcomes group.

Clinical research using electronic medical record (EMR) data is an emerging source of scientific progress. Increasingly, researchers are using retrospective observational data acquired from EMRs as the substrate for their clinical research into comorbidities, procedures, situations, and outcomes that have historically presented significant challenges. Although EMR data collection is perceived to require fewer resources than manual chart review, there are many specific regulatory, privacy, data quality, and technique issues unique to clinical research using EMR data. This article discusses the use of EMRs for observational research.