Functionality is a major point to consider when choosing an electronic medical records (EMR) software system, so it’s essential to develop an understanding of the key performance indices that should be captured for a medical practice by an EMR software system. Usability is also an important component, so be sure to consider how easy it will be for everyone involved to learn how to operate the system.

Working with a reputable consulting firm can help you get to the bottom of your practice’s needs, but a good rule of thumb is to find a system that will enable you and your staff to electronically complete all necessary tasks in the same amount of time (or less) than it takes to do them on paper.

Good EMR software systems should be able to accommodate doctors who are used to dictating, as well as those who prefer to type their notes. Also, scheduling appointments should be a snap, but ask about integration to make sure staff members don’t have to toggles back and forth between two systems. You should be able to quickly and easily scan paper documents into the system, and sending a prescription electronically should take mere seconds. Finally, allowing faxes to come directly into the EMR system should help the overall work flow, while staff members should be able to enter information regarding vital signs at the point of care by using a tablet, touch screen or laptop in the examination room.

You should also be able to easily track your clinic’s overall performance on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis. Many EMR software systems will allow doctors to chart the demographics of patients, revenues and accounts. This data allows you to evaluate the performance of different areas of a facility, spot trends and ultimately enhance your services by adjusting to the unique needs of your practice. On a very basic level, your EMR software system should also allow you to collect relevant information about the number of physicians on staff, the staff-to-physician ratio and the average number of phone calls that are received daily.

Once a medical facility has decided to implement a new electronic medical records system (EMR), it’s essential to become familiar with the various software and hardware requirements that exist. The capabilities of EMR software systems are virtually limitless, and costs increase with the number of features a system has. For this reason, smaller practices can often get by with a less complicated, and therefore less expensive, EMR software system than a larger hospital or medical facility.

In order to determine your facility’s software requirements, it is helpful to perform a cost-benefit analysis that will help you choose between various available systems. In order to avoid costly purchasing errors, it is essential to choose a system that fits your budget and your needs prior to implementation. In general, it is typically best to look for EMR software that meets every current need but can also easily be scaled to meet future requirements.

When conducting a cost-benefit analysis for EMR software, begin by having a clear understanding of what you will need the software to do. For example, systems can often produce data regarding your facilities’ staff to physician ratio, the average number of calls you receive in a given time period and the patient capacity of the center, to name only a few.

It is also important to gauge the amount of training your staff will require, and to determine whether or not that service is included with the price of the software package. Inevitably, there will be a learning curve as everyone gets used to the interface and various features of the software, and any resulting hurdles are much more easily overcome when training is provided during the implementation process.

In addition to providing the software, providers will also configure all hardware to meet the needs of your facility. In many cases, practices will find they must purchase a significant amount of new hardware in order to meet the needs of running a digital recordkeeping system. Since it is essential to provide the proper support for the infrastructure of your new system, the price of things like new server stations, printers and computers should also be figured into the cost-benefit analysis. It is also prudent to consider the longevity of new equipment, so be sure to work with a reputable dealer who will provide direction, support and maintenance if necessary.

While all of this may seem a bit overwhelming at first, healthcare facilities and physicians can ultimately save time and money by doing extra legwork on the front end of the project. EMRs are beginning to revolutionize the way we provide healthcare, so be sure to ask the right questions and consult with an EMR expert before choosing a software system for your facility.

Certified medical software can help doctors increase profit and improve patient care. But how do you know if software is “certified”, and why does it matter?? For one thing, if medical records are going to go digital, it’s essential for state and federal governments to develop sensible, well-defined regulations.

The idea is ostensibly to encourage the adoption of electronic medical record (EMR) software systems that provide highly reliable, efficient recordkeeping, and which also protect patient safety and privacy – all the while eliminating sub-standard systems that could compromise the integrity of healthcare facilities by violating a patient’s right to privacy.

Certified EMR adoption is encouraged in part by provisions in the stimulus law that call for Medicaid penalties – that is, cuts in reimbursements for healthcare facilities that choose not to adopt a certified EMR software system. A recent report from the PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute predicts that these Medicaid penalties could ultimately do more to encourage physicians to adopt certified EMRs than other incentives, including cash for purchasing and implementation.

Medicare and Medicaid are also offering maximum bonuses of $44,000 and $63,750, respectively, to help individual healthcare facilities adopt certified EMRs. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for choosing the criteria that will separate qualified EMR software systems from those that will not be eligible to receive incentives, and they have already announced that there will be multiple certification bodies, but each one will be required to certify EMRs using criteria specified by the HHS.

Although the development of the exact criteria is still part of an ongoing process, the Health IT Advisory Committee – a group responsible for advising the HHS – has announced that they will ‘grandfather in’ vendors that obtained certification for software systems in 2008 from the Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT). Ultimately, it seems that physicians will be able to move ahead with confidence to implement new digital recordkeeping systems – as long as they take the time to ask the tough questions and understand all of the rules before jumping into the game.

Today, patients can easily manage and access their personal medical records online via Google Health, a simple and effective program that removes the hassle of paper filing systems. In addition, Google Health has simple, well-documented Application Program Interfaces (APIs) and employs the use of health information standards – including the Continuity of Care Record (CCR) and ASTM International – to transfer, retrieve and store patients’ health information.

Thanks to these advances in technology, healthcare professionals can now empower patients to gain control over their own medical histories – and encourage them to spread the word about Google Health among friends and family as well! Asking patients to import their medical records to this platform is a crucial step in digitizing health records, as healthcare software and device developers can then create personalized information for each user by accessing the patient’s information from the operating platform.

Google Health has taken the user’s privacy concerns into account as well, implementing the highest level of online security that includes but is not limited to the use of digital certificates and end-to-end public key encryption. In addition, Google Health allows physicians to analyze cross sections of a single patient’s medical history, and/or to compare it with multiple patient histories – as long as the patients have all granted access.

Patients can formulate electronic medical records in Google Health simply by creating a Google account and signing up for Google Health. Next, they are prompted to import their records online and to add the name and location of any medical providers. There is also room to add a variety of other medical information, as well as a number of questions that must be answered, including data regarding the patient’s height, weight, age, existing medical conditions, etc.

Physicians and patients who work together via Google Health will be ahead of the curve in the effort to centralize the nation’s medical records. Doing so will prevent loss, reduce errors and improve the quality of care – what are you waiting for?

Kirsten E. Silven

There has been much discussion about the impact that electronic medical records (EMRs) will have on the ability of healthcare facilities to share electronic health information. Many experts, physicians and healthcare facilities already recognize that the universal use of EMR software could revolutionize modern medicine, and there is little doubt that the quality of care patients receive would greatly improve with a national health information system.

In fact, perhaps one of the most important functions of EMRs is that they allow doctors, specialists and hospitals to easily and accurately share important patient information. Data regarding blood glucose levels, medical history, blood type and current medications – to name only a few – would be instantly available to any medical professional a patient chooses to see. Not only would this allow for his/her care to be increasingly comprehensive, but it would also provide easy access to vital information in the event of an emergency.

In addition to the benefits that EMRs provide for individual patients, the ability for healthcare professionals to exchange and view aggregated data is another huge advantage of using digital recordkeeping systems. In fact, a recent study by PricewaterhouseCoopers, titled, “Transforming Healthcare through Secondary Use of Health Data,” shows that hospitals and physician’s practices have already begun to use this data to reduce errors, improve outcomes and increase the opportunities for revenue.

Although data sharing still has a way to go before reaching its full potential, organizations like The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are working on ways to begin accepting and utilizing clinical quality data directly from the electronic medical records of hospitals. This could prove to be a real boon for medical care in the U.S., since it would allow doctors to view verifiable, comprehensive data about chronic diseases and other health issues, and would also provide valuable insight into the effectiveness of various treatments. In the years ahead, EMR software solutions will continue to become an integral part of how healthcare facilities operate, and the easy exchange of electronic health information will be a vital part of this endeavor.