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Now that more than $4.4 billion in electronic health record (EHR) incentive payments (as of March 2012) have been paid to 76,000plus healthcare providers, it"s time to focus on the rest ofthe physicians in this country who need to implement an EHR system. Many physicians are afraid to take the technological leap becausethey are either not fully educated on the process to adopt an EHRsystem, or they may see implementing an EHR as a hassle and a wasteof time and money without improving patient care. So how do wehelp the physicians who are afraid to take the leap of faith andthe others who are skeptical? The answer is quite simple: We needto provide tips that really work for both camps of physicians. Let"s first address those physicians out there who want toimplement an EHR system but just don"t know where to begin. Your first stop is your local Regional Extension Center (REC). Your local REC will provide you with a great deal of information onthe EHR adoption process. Many RECs provide subsidized (free)services to help you select and implement your EHR system. MostRECs also have pre-negotiated rates and terms with the top EHRvendors. Many RECs have hired Health IT consultants to help youthrough the process, as well. Take advantage of your local REC andbuild a relationship with a Health IT firm. You"ll needHealth IT Consultants who specialize in your system for years tocome since EHR systems and CMS requirements tend to change. To find your local REC, Google"Regional Extension Centers" and select the firstsearch result "HealthIT.hhs.gov: REC Program". Now for you skeptics out there - let"s see how we can helpyou. If you think you"ll wait until the big groups orpractices have ironed out the kinks of implementing an EHR system,you will be waiting a very long time. In most cases, the projectsyou"ve heard about lacked leadership and were poorly managed. Change management is all too often not considered. We"veseen projects that went through the motions of the implementationbut the clinicians and staff were not engaged and not supportive ofmaking the change to the new system. As you can see, these areproblems that will never go away, but with the right leadership inplace, your project will be a success. Here is a list of EHR implementation tips that I"ve gatheredfrom the field that REALLY WORK. These tips come directly fromconsultants who are out in the field every day working withproviders in an ambulatory care setting implementing various EHRSystems. How you can be successful in your EHR implementation process: 1) Build Your Team. Chances are your CEO, COO or CMO has tasked someone in IT oradministration to search out and find the best EHR for theorganization. It"s time to build your team. To get started,hire a health IT consultant to help you and your physicians throughthe process of selecting the right EHR. Once your EHR is selected,hire a project manager who has implemented your system before andmake sure s/he has a solid project management methodology theyfollow. Find a health IT service firm who can help lead your teamand work with your vendor to implement the new system. Ensure thatyou have a physician champion who can advise the project team andrally the other physicians and clinical staff around the EHRimplementation. Everyone on the team must be professional and havea positive attitude. 2) Choose the right partners. Don"t try to do everything on your own. Figure out whatyou"re good at or what you can commit to learning andoutsource everything else. Look for companies that fit yourpractice"s culture; ensure their company values match yours. Negotiating first on cost instead of the value that the partnerbrings to the table is a mistake. 3) Choose the right software. This is where your consultant will help you through the process-make sure your consultant forces you to evaluate the clinicalaspects, as well as the software vendor"s financialviability. Also, make sure there are people in your area who knowthe system or who at least have access to a company who iscertified and trained on the product. 4) Understand and document all workflows. Ensure that all workflows from check-in to checkout are evaluatedand documented. Communications between Medical Assistants/Nursingstaff and Providers must be evaluated as well. Once all of yourworkflows are documented, ask the team to walk through how theseworkflows will be executed in the new system. After you"Go-Live", walk through all of the workflows at the endof the first week again and make sure they still make sense. Ifany changes are made, update your documentation and communicate thechanges to everyone. 5) Accept that paper charts will be phased out. The end goal of your EHR project is to chart electronically andnot on paper. Develop a good strategy for abstracting data fromthe patient"s chart and move your clinicians off of paper assoon as possible. Investigate a strategy where the data is liftedfrom the chart and placed back on the shelf rather than scanningall documents into the EHR System. You want as much discreet datalifted off the paper chart and entered into the system as possible.It is perfectly OK to mark charts as being abstracted and let themfollow the normal course provided by your record retention policy. 6) Develop Training Manuals and create an on-going trainingprogram. Develop training manuals for your system that takes into accountyour workflows. Develop a training program for new hires, as wellas re-training for existing staff (including Clinicians). 7) Join or build a community. When selecting your EHR software, understand who else in your areais using the same system. If a local user group has been formed,join it right away. If a local user group doesn"t exist yet,plan on forming one. It is extremely important to network withothers who are using the same system. You will learn bestpractices from each other and avoid many pitfalls. Lastly, the most important key to success is choosing the rightteam, partners, and software. As Benjamin Franklin once said,"We must hang together or assuredly we will all hangseparately." So let"s focus our collective efforts tohelp this next wave of physicians adopt an EHR system, meet stage 1 Meaningful Use and continue this momentum on in to stage 2 Meaningful Use. James Deck is president of MTS Healthcare . The e-commerce company in China offers quality products such as Obd ii Connector , China Ecu Chip Tuning, and more. For more , please visit Airbag Reset Tools today!
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