EHR/EMR Solutions for Medical Practices

Send to friendAs a part of the 2009 Stimulus package, there is strong financial incentive for doctors to install and implement EMR systems in their practice.
According to the US Government, the benefits of IT use in the healthcare sector can bring these benefits:

Health information technology (HIT)
Health information technology in general are increasingly viewed as the most promising tool for improving the overall quality, safety and efficiency of the health delivery system (Chaudhry et al., 2006).
Broad and consistent utilization of HIT will:

• Improve health care quality;
• Prevent medical errors;
• Reduce health care costs;
• Increase administrative efficiencies;
• Decrease paperwork; and
• Expand access to affordable care.

The carrot:

"Incentive payments of $17.2 billion will be made through Medicare to go to health professionals and hospitals for certified EHR technology. Incentive payments will be made to physicians for the first five years from 2011-2015 if the use of EHR technology is demonstrated. The Medicare payment schedule for eligible professionals is $15,000 for the first year. However, if by 2015, a health professional does not demonstrate the use of EHR, then Medicare reimbursement payments will be reduced."

Definitions

The four basic functions considered necessary for an operational EMR

1. computerized orders for prescriptions
2. computerized orders for tests
3. test results reporting
   
4. physician notes

Reference

• Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Health Information Technology at US Department of Health & Human Services
• Healthcare Information Technology from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
• Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT)
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electronic_medical_record#cite_note-6
• e-MDs ARRA and HIT Overview
• http://www.cchit.org/choose/ambulatory/08/
• http://www.cchit.org/ambulatory/criteria/index.asp
• http://e-mds.com/News/release_archives/2009StimulusFAQ.html