The Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT has identified getting patients to use EHR systems to view their own medical data as a key to generating further support for the nation's transition to a networked healthcare system. New evidence suggests that a growing number of patients are doing this.

A study released by Manhattan Research showed that 56 million Americans have already used EHR technology to view their records and another 41 million are interested in doing so. The researchers said these figures mark strong growth in consumer EHR use.

“Growth in access of electronic health records by patients has been remarkable in the last year," said Meredith Ressi, president of the research company. "There's been strong pent up demand from consumers over the years, but only now has the supply side caught up as a result of the government mandate."

She added that the findings indicate a major shift happening in the way care is delivered. This could lead to much higher levels of patient engagement, which experts have said is a key to better quality.