Four Ways A Electronic Medical Record System Helps Your Practice

Electronic medical record systems have been a part of large Healthcare organizations for years, and are not going away anytime soon. In fact, now small clinics and single physician practices have started adopting them. The question many of these doctors ask, however, is, \”what can an EMR system do for me?\”

Rapid Prescription Transfer – It\’s a classic part of the practice of medicine – doctor handwriting illegibility. Funny as it sounds (and it doesn\’t concern every physician, of course), this is a huge problem across North America. With an electronic medical record system, however, unlike handwritten prescriptions, there is little to no chance of incorrect prescriptions or doses. Doctors will also have to take fewer telephone calls regarding prescriptions, which adds up when it comes to patient time.

Laboratory Results Quickly and Simply – How many times have you had patients trying to get test results, forcing you had to take time from your busy schedule to call them back and let them know of the results? With electronic medical records, meanwhile, patients can retrieve their results quickly and easily. This is an advantage – the only disadvantage is that it\’s sometimes hard to know exactly what test results mean, so sometimes they will still call you.

Have EMR, Will Travel – Patients with major health issues typically do not travel. But emergencies do arise, and part of the electronic medical record benefit is that your patient (and you, the practitioner) has access to their medical records with a simple browser and Internet connection. Understanding this gives not only you, but the patients, true peace of mind, safe in the knowledge that wherever they go, a doctor can securely retrieve their medical record.

Prescription Warning Signs – The prescription process is completely energized and streamlined with a correctly configured electronic medical record. Prescription mixing dangers are typically pre-programmed into the software so catching them becomes very simple.

Not only will it help with finding interaction problems but it also is cost-effective. In fact, a lot of health plans are encouraging physicians to go to this type of prescription because it saves cash for the health plan and the patient because it\’s easier to check for possible generic drugs when it\’s done electronically.

The real benefit of electronic medical records is simply that everyone involved, from the patient to the practitioner to the insurance company, experiences the efficiencies and ease of the system. Communication issues are cut down dramatically, both for tests and prescriptions. Doctors can treat and diagnose patients from distant locations, or let remote doctors use the records to provide their own diagnoses. The future is here, all thanks to EMR systems.

The amount of minutes spent both in regards to in-person patient communication and also telephone conversations arecut dramatically with a well-designed system. The Federal Government observed in 2009 that not only was EMR a great concept for the economy, but for the future of healthcare in general. Have you benefited yet?

Carl Hardy is a educator at Electronic Medical Records Group and the editor of http://www.electronicmedicalrecords.org. Check out selection tips and read more about EMR Implementation features here.