Some Ways to Implement an Electronic Medical Records System
Implementation of electronic medical records (EMR) is a big project. Something this large needs to adhere to a specific timeline or it may never happen at all. Our medical practice learned this on a number of occasions, as hurricanes, new building construction, and new partners all set our original goal back by a couple of years. This was largely true because we were using a soft goal instead of a firm one. A solid date to go live makes it much easier to everyone on board and cultivate the motivation for what could end up one of the most stressful business events your staff will experience.
You must designate a project manager to take charge of project implementation. This should be an existing staff member such as your top IT person or clinic supervisor, or you may hire an outside consulting company. Next, you'll need a plan, including the who, what, where, when, and how of EMR roll-out.
When:
Before pulling the trigger on your EMR plans, be sure all of your financial assets are at the ready. It only takes a single absent or poorly-prepared component to cast well-laid plans down the path to ruin.
Is your staff ready? Your schedule should include at least a month of intensive staff training before the go live date. You may need to create a staff rotation during the work day, or train people after hours and pay them overtime. The supervisor must determine if the staff is adequately trained to work with the EMR system in a real clinical setting; they will then need time to practice to keep their skills updated.
Are the structures ready? If you have been keeping up with this column, you understand that your facilities must be wired properly with network cable, and your wireless infrastructure must be tested and ready for action. Don't forget to make an accurate assessment of adequate bandwidth at each office location by adding up the total of all devices to be used.
Is the hardware ready? Are your desktop computers set-up and configured correctly? Are the wireless tablets on-hand? Is software installed properly, and tested? Do you have a proper disaster recovery plan in practice?
Who:
At a typical practice, physicians will range across the EMR spectrum, from passive resistance to cautious optimism. Whoever is in charge of spearheading the project must decide when the doctors will roll-out, either in unison or staggered on different launch days.
Some physicians may be well-comfortable with allowing colleagues to test the waters; however, this could lead to more stress and work for the staff. For example, if one physician sees a patient and uses an electronic card, and then the same patient goes on a follow-up with another doctor using a paper chart, how will they reconcile the patient's chart?
What:
If you don't exactly thrive on the idea of going electronic in a day, you may consider designing a system which sees only some patients on the EMR system. At our practice we decided to start with new patients only, to prevent our clinics from grinding to an abrupt halt. As patients return for follow-up visits, they continue to be seen using the electronic medical records system.
Where:
If your practice has multiple locations, you may decide to implement electronic medical records at one office before moving on to the others. However, if your staff rotates between locations, your training plan must accommodate this. Also, if too much time passes in between office roll-outs, training may take a hit. Since we decided to start with new patients only, we chose to roll-out at all locations simultaneously, so clinics wouldn't be burdened by large disparities in staff training and skills.
How:
As previously stated, a project of this size needs a firm commitment from the authority in your practice, along with buy-in at all levels in the organization. Just one negative voice from someone in a power position, and the entire project could be dragged down. If the practice is aware that a physician is working against the team, a managing partner may have to intervene. The administrators at the practice should not be bogged down with this task. Patients should be well-informed about the practice's determination to make headway into the future, so they'll forgive a little bit as clinics work out the kinks in the system.
By the way, do you want to learn more about implementing EMR in your own practice? Download my free report "Getting Through The EMR Maze" Click here for the free EMR report
Do you want to learn more about increasing revenue and cutting costs in your practice? Download my free report "The 7 Key Strategies To Building A Successful Medical Practice Even In Tough Economic Times" Click here for the free report
Peter J. Polack, M.D., F.A.C.S., is founder of emedikon, a medical practice management consulting firm and president of Protodrone, a software development company specializing in medical practice applications.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Peter_Polack
http://EzineArticles.com/?Some-Ways-to-Implement-an-Electronic-Medical-Records-System&id=2124776
Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites
