If you work in healthcare, you have probably heard of EMR systems and how helpful they can be for physicians, nurses, medical technicians, and virtually all other medical professionals. However, many healthcare organizations and administrators still don’t fully understand these systems’ ins and outs.
In this article, we dive deeper into electronic medical records (EMR) software and see how you can maximize these systems in your medical practice. Let’s dive in.
What is EMR Software?
Many of today’s healthcare workers use Electronic Medical Records software to streamline and improve how they deliver care. The program stores, manages, and updates patients’ medical records electronically, which enhances data handling and access.
Unlike traditional paper records, EMR systems allow healthcare professionals to access and share patient information more efficiently and securely. This solution has become a non-negotiable tool for hospitals and clinics. Even people with careers in psychology have started using these systems.
Today, over 88% of office-based physicians now use an EMR system. For the most part, its popularity has been due to all the helpful features of an EMR system. The specific features that each EMR software can vary between different EMR solutions. However, some of the most common capabilities include:
- Patient Demographics – An EMR system can store a patient’s basic information, such as name, age, gender, address, and contact details. You can use this feature to facilitate patient identification and demographic analysis.
- Medical History – This system also gives you comprehensive records of patients’ medical histories, including past diagnoses, treatments, surgeries, allergies, and chronic conditions. Many healthcare providers use that history to make more informed decisions.
- Medication Management – The feature can track a patient’s current and past medications, prescribing capabilities, and checks for potential drug interactions. Healthcare professionals in concierge medicine can use this to track ongoing medications.
- Progress Notes – This allows healthcare providers to document patient visits, observations, treatment plans, and progress notes. You can easily create a detailed account of care provided over time with added notes.
- Appointment Scheduling – Many EMR software have in-built or integration-enabled scheduling systems to manage patient appointments, reminders, and follow-ups. Front desks use this to improve clinic workflow and patient satisfaction.
- Laboratory and Imaging Results – An EMR system can facilitate electronic ordering and receipt of laboratory tests and imaging studies. In effect, you and your patients get quicker access to results and more efficient patient management.
- Electronic Prescription – EMRs also reduce errors and improve patients’ convenience through electronic prescriptions, which you can send to pharmacies.
- Clinical Decision Support – Digital systems do more than clerical work. They can assist healthcare providers with alerts, reminders, and clinical guidelines to support decision-making and improve compliance with best practices.
- Billing and Coding – Some EMR software integrates fully with your billing systems to streamline the coding and billing process. You can enable such features to reduce your receivables and simplify patient payments.
- Patient Portal – There’s a high chance one segment of your patients wants to access their medical data, too. An EMR gives patients access to their medical records, lab results, and medication lists. Some systems also allow them to schedule appointments, request prescription refills, and communicate with their healthcare providers.
Benefits of Using EMR
EMR systems are crucial to health information technology and offer several benefits over paper records. Here are some of the most notable:
Improved Patient Care
If enhancing the overall quality of care is your priority, an EMR should help you reach that objective. How? EMR software gives you and your team quick access to patient records. To improve healthcare, you need to facilitate better and faster decision-making by healthcare providers. It supports patient care management through features like medication management, allergy checks, and treatment history review.
Enhanced Coordination
EMRs enable better coordination among the healthcare team. These systems do this by allowing various providers to access and update patient records simultaneously. This primarily benefits patients seeing multiple specialists or receiving care at different healthcare facilities.
Increased Efficiency
There’s a large wave of medical providers who have prioritized digitizing records, especially in developing countries. That’s because digital systems tend to save more time and resources, even over the short term.
EMRs reduce the need for manual paperwork, improving healthcare operations’ efficiency. This can result in reduced administrative costs and more time for healthcare providers to spend with patients.
Secure Data Management
EMR systems can also offer patients and their primary care providers advanced security features to protect patient information against unauthorized access. In some countries, you also need these to comply with healthcare regulations. One example is the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) in the United States. Non-compliance with this law could lead to massive repercussions for medical providers.
Data Analysis and Reporting
EMRs can also aggregate data for analysis, which tends to help healthcare providers identify trends, manage outbreaks, and improve public health outcomes. They also facilitate easier reporting for compliance and quality improvement purposes.
Best Practices of Using EMR
Implementing and using EMR systems effectively involves several best practices that can help healthcare organizations maximize the benefits of digital records. Here are some essential best practices for using EMR systems.
1) Provide Comprehensive Training
Simply launching a program in your organization without support isn’t ideal. You must ensure that all your users, including doctors, nurses, administrative staff, and other healthcare providers, receive thorough training on the EMR system.
Continuous education and support should be provided to accommodate updates to the system and onboard new staff. If switching between providers, you must also give all stakeholders and users an onboarding flow.
2) Set Data Entry Standards
Data is the new currency for many industries, healthcare included. That means you need to establish and enforce consistent data entry standards. These regulations help ensure the accuracy, completeness, and quality of the information in your EMR system. Some common standard operating procedures include:
- Consistent Formatting
- Structured Data Entry
- Mandatory Fields
- Use of Standardized Terminologies and Coding Systems
- Spell-Checking and Grammar
- Duplication Checks
- Accuracy Verification
- Confidentiality and Access Controls
- Audit Trails
- Training and Guidelines
- Feedback Mechanism
3) Priority Patient Privacy and Data Security
As mentioned above, data privacy is crucial. More than avoiding consequences, however, medical professionals must comply for the sake and protection of their patients. Cyberattacks and crimes have only grown over the years, and it’s one of our primary duties as providers to avoid them.
Implement strict security measures to protect patient information and comply with regulations. This includes using strong passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, regular security audits, and educating staff about privacy practices.
4) Schedule Regular Data Backups
Regularly back up EMR data to prevent loss in case of hardware failure, natural disasters, or cyberattacks. Ensure backup systems are secure and tested frequently to confirm data can be restored effectively.
5) Promote Interoperability
It’s best to use systems that interoperate with your other programs for more streamlined overall operations. You can achieve this by choosing EMR systems that can easily exchange information with other healthcare providers, laboratories, pharmacies, and health information exchanges. This facilitates better care coordination and patient outcomes.
6) Find Areas for Quality Improvement
Finding areas for quality improvement can improve your operations and patient service. To do that, you can use the data analytics and reporting tools within the EMR to identify and plan quality improvement initiatives. Analyze data on patient outcomes, practice patterns, and operational efficiency to identify areas for improvement.
7) Customization and Optimization
Customize and optimize the EMR system to fit your practice’s specific workflows and needs. This can include custom templates for notes, streamlined data entry forms, and optimized interfaces for different specialties.
8) Feedback Loop
Establish a feedback loop where users can report issues, suggest improvements, and share best practices for using the EMR. Continuous improvement based on user feedback can enhance system usability and satisfaction.
9) Medical Care in the Digital Age
Times are changing and digital solutions like EMR systems are becoming non-negotiable in healthcare. The healthcare’s Internet of Things realm is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17.8% to reach $289.2 billion by 2028.
So, if you aren’t using digital tools, now is the time to adapt. Start with a simple EMR and scale as you get used to the software. There will undoubtedly be friction initially, but the benefits greatly outweigh the challenges.