Save Time, Money And Frustration With Electronic Medical Records
A typical office manager running a large family practice always finds ways to streamline
daily activities in efforts to save time, reduce the workload and keep costs under control. However, one area that has been under much scrutiny by both the medical community and the federal government is the way in which streamlining has led offices to the poor management of patients' medical records. For far too long, the medical community has relied on paper medical records to keep track of their patients, allowing for errors and confidentiality issues.
While this may have worked relatively well in the past, it is a costly and often a hazardous way to keep confidential information and medical records. Today, many medical offices and hospital are turning to electronic medical records in place of the old paper files. These practices and hospitals have realized that not only has the
electronic medical records implementation been mandated by the federal government, who required implementation by year 2015, but it also makes sense in todays technically advanced world.
"We're in an electronic age. You either go with it, or you're in the Dark Ages," said Pat Willis, RN, chief nursing officer for seven-physician Big Sandy Healthcare, in eastern Kentucky, which installed its first EMR in July.
For those hospitals and private practices that have not yet converted to EMR, time is running out quickly. There are significant penalties, including but not limited to reductions in the Medicaid and Medicare reimbursements paid by the government. With over 30 years of market presence and the recent implemented stimulus program, EMR use peaked at 50.7% in 2010. All considered, this is a very low turn around in 2010.
Thanks in part to the ramped up efforts of the government and the medical community, the number of medical facilities making the switch to EMR is increasing rapidly this year. For those still unsure if they want to make the switch, there are several very good reasons to go electronic however there are two in particular that would provide immediate returns for those who choose to convert.
First and foremost, old fashioned paper charts take up an incredible amount of space, the larger the patient base the larger the space needed for shelves for records storage.
EMR provides a much easier and space managing solution, every patient record is stored on a single server, or if preferred, cloud-based storage is available as well. Imagine what can be done with all that extra space, physician may be able to create an extra visit room for a more improved patient visit flow.
Secondly, in a traditional practice setting, the office staff works tireless hours to file every lab report, translate (yes, translate) the doctors' illegible notes to include in each patient's file, amongst many other related tasks. These tasks are taking too many hours to accomplish, frequently resulting in an access of overtime expenses, another legitimate and tangible reason for implementing an EMR solution.
With EMR/EHR partners, payers, clearing houses, pharmacies, and lab centers; practices have interfacing abilities allowing for bilateral communication freeing your staff from mundane tasks.
As one can see, there are numerous advantages to using electronic health records in the office. Instead of continuing to live in the dark ages with the old paper records; physicians, practice staff and patients will benefit significantly from electronic medical records and practice management.
Those who are ready to make the switch should take a look at IMS, an intelligent medical software available by
Meditab. Meditabs IMS has all of the uses mentioned earlier and it has been designed to help improve the workflow of the medical office, relieve office staff from a number of time consuming tasks, and allow higher quality care for patients.
by:Meditab
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