I Bought My EMR Software System - Now What?

Overwhelmingly, clinics and hospitals are adopting and implementing EMR systems. NextGen EMR, AllScripts EMR, eClinicalWorks EMR, and Epic EMR are leading the way in new implementations and replacements. This electronic medical record technology is key to meeting the federal requirements for Meaningful Use incentives.

However, it's only a starting point for achieving the goals of the government and the objectives your organization should be targeting. To truly reach the desired interoperability, patient safety, cost savings, improved outcomes, and patient engagement, more steps will be required.

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First: Have you truly implemented the workflows required? Just because your system can record whether you check smoking status doesn't mean that objective is met. You now need to ask patients and record the status they give you. Audit closely and audit now to know where the gaps are; some of this requirements really require change in the providers' workflow. Also, if you are using custom forms, they may not be capturing the required data to prove Meaningful Use.

Next, identify the required ancillary products.

Do you have a patient portal selected yet? This is required if you are looking to meet the Menu Objective for patient engagement. Kryptiq patient portal and MedFusion are leaders in this area. You will need to configure this so you can direct your patients here to access their health information. This can give you a competitive edge as well; patients are drawn to the capability to schedule and pay bills on line.

Have you enabled ePrescribing yet? You must have this capacity enabled and in use for pharmacies that accept eRx. SureScripts is one of the most-utilized resources. There are many reasons to adopt this; receiving the federal incentive funds is just one perk.

Secure Messaging is another requirement. You need to be able to securing exchange information with other providers, partners, and patients. You can find secure messaging products that integrate into your electronic medical records system, allowing you to send directly from your EMR system.

You will need interfaces connecting you to area labs and to state or federal immunization registries. This secure exchange is required.

The first year, clinics and hospitals can simply self-declare, reporting to CMS that they have met Meaningful Use. However, in subsequent years, they will be required to produce reports from their EHR company proving this. They will need to submit these reports to CMS, proving compliance. As such, reporting is another key area to develop.

If you implement these pieces, you are now on track to receive the federal incentive funds. But pay close attention, as the requirements will get tougher for Stage 2 in two years.

I Bought My EMR Software System - Now What?

Jack Glad created EMR Software Pro. This site helps you find the best EMR software vendor for your organization's needs! Check out EMRSoftwarePro.com.

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