EHR Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield EHR facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. A nurse notices that a patient's allergy to penicillin is not listed in the EHR despite the patient reporting it verbally. What is the BEST immediate action? → Document the allergy in the EHR allergy module and notify the prescribing physician
2. Which of the following best describes a key competency required for meaningful use & mips requirements in EHR practice? → Strong analytical skills combined with effective communication and ethical judgment
3. Under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule, what does the 'conversion factor' determine? → The dollar value assigned to one Relative Value Unit (RVU) to calculate payment amounts
4. What is the main goal of EHR system optimization? → Ensuring the system is user-friendly and efficient
5. What is a 'MIPS Value Pathway' (MVP)? → A subset of MIPS measures and activities relevant to a specific specialty or condition
6. What is the primary purpose of a Recovery Time Objective (RTO) in an EHR disaster recovery plan? → To define the maximum tolerable downtime before restoration must occur
7. Which modifier is commonly appended to a CPT code to indicate that a procedure was performed on the left side of the body? → Modifier LT
8. A patient wants to share their portal health summary with a specialist outside the network. Which portal feature best supports this? → Blue Button download
9. What metric BEST measures EHR user adoption after go-live? → System login frequency and task completion rates per role
10. Which transport standard is required by ONC for secure Direct messaging to exchange health information between providers? → SMTP with S/MIME encryption
11. What does the term 'semantic interoperability' mean in the context of health information exchange? → Systems can exchange data and accurately interpret its meaning
12. Which FHIR resource type is used to represent a patient's active problem list in an EHR? → Condition
13. A hospital notices that nurses are bypassing required allergy fields in the EHR. What is the BEST initial step? → Investigate whether the workflow creates an unnecessary burden at the point of care
14. Which portal feature supports the care transition process when a patient is discharged from a hospital? → Access to discharge instructions and medication reconciliation summary through the portal
15. High-alert medications in CPOE systems receive the most rigorous safety checks because: → Errors involving them carry the highest risk of serious patient harm or death
16. A care coordinator reviews a panel report showing patients with HbA1c > 9%. This is an example of which population health activity? → Registry-based outreach
17. What is the primary goal of 'CDS Hooks' in modern EHR interoperability? → To allow external CDS services to inject recommendations into EHR workflows via FHIR
18. Which terminology standard is required by ONC for recording problems/diagnoses in a certified EHR? → ICD-10-CM
19. Which of the following best describes a key competency required for patient portal & engagement tools in EHR practice? → Strong analytical skills combined with effective communication and ethical judgment
20. A covered entity discovers that an unauthorized person accessed 600 patient records. Which breach notification action is required? → Notify affected individuals, the Secretary of HHS, and prominent local media outlets
21. The Promoting Interoperability (PI) category in MIPS replaced which earlier program? → Meaningful Use (EHR Incentive Program)
22. What does formulary checking in an EHR e-prescribing workflow accomplish? → Confirms the prescribed drug is covered under the patient's insurance plan
23. Which EHR customization helps prevent alert fatigue among clinicians? → Tuning alert thresholds and suppressing low-value alerts based on role and context
24. Which data type, when integrated into a patient portal, represents patient-generated health data (PGHD)? → Blood pressure readings from a home monitor synced to the portal
25. Which of the following best describes 'data integrity' as it applies to EHR security? → Ensuring that ePHI is not altered or destroyed in an unauthorized manner
26. What is the PRIMARY function of an EHR's 'order set'? → To provide pre-built, evidence-based collections of orders for common clinical scenarios
27. Which of the following ensures that patient data is protected in an EHR system? → Using strong encryption and user authentication
28. In the context of EHR certification, what is the most important consideration when implementing ehr customization & workflow design? → Ensuring alignment with established standards, stakeholder needs, and best practices
29. Which metric calculates the proportion of a population that has a disease at a specific point in time? → Prevalence rate
30. A hospital is transitioning from paper charts to an EHR. Which strategy BEST ensures continuity of care during the transition? → Running a parallel period where both paper and EHR records are maintained temporarily