Integrating Third-Party Apps With Electronic Health Records to Support COVID-19 Response

OBJECTIVES: To (1) track the integration of telehealth-and COVID-19-related apps with electronic health records (EHRs) over time, (2) identify the primary functionality of apps designed to support the COVID-19 response, and (3) examine whether apps available prior to the pandemic added new telehealth-or COVID-19-related functionalities during the pandemic. STUDY DESIGN: Data were collected from public EHR app galleries on a monthly basis from December 31, 2019, through June 1, 2021. METHODS: Apps were identified as relating to COVID-19 or telehealth using text analysis of the app marketing materials. Descriptive analyses were conducted to characterize telehealth-and COVID-19-related apps discovered through the app galleries, identify their primary functionality, and examine whether any apps added new telehealth-or COVID-19-related functionalities during the pandemic. RESULTS: The number of COVID-19-related apps increased from 0 in March 2020 to 19 a month later and continued to grow to 62 as of June 2021. The number of telehealth-related apps more than doubled from prepandemic levels (n = 41) to a total of 87 apps by June 2021. These apps were 2 times more likely to contain specialized capabilities used to support COVID-19 response efforts, such as secure messaging, vaccine administration, and laboratory testing, compared with all apps listed in the EHR app galleries. CONCLUSIONS: These findings demonstrate the potential of integrating third-party apps into EHRs to expand the range of tools that health care providers can use to diagnose, treat, and communicate with patients.