Selecting the Right Electronic Health Record (EHR) System for Our Physician Office

Management of modern healthcare facilities relies on Electronic Health Record systems. As the manager of the physician’s office in my location, I have been given the responsibility of implementing an Electronic Health Record system to ensure internal and external processes in the facility are running smoothly (Hoffman, 2016). This essay will examine the features of commercially available Electronic Health Record systems while explaining their functions and how they are applied within the managerial process in healthcare facilities. Through this information, we can make informed decisions on the best HER system for our facility.

Features of Commercially Available EHR Systems

1. Patient Demographics and Registration

This feature is very important to the management of the patients effectively since it is able to capture and store information important for patients. The information captured includes contact data, demographics, insurance data, and medical history (Peden, 2015). The feature can be applied in broad areas in healthcare facilities, from streamlining the registration of patients and billing process to making sure patients are precisely identified. This ensures there are minimum errors and improves the efficiency of the operations in the management process.

2. Electronic Prescribing (e-prescribing)

Healthcare can be made easier at the physician’s office by adapting e-prescribing, which helps physicians transmit prescriptions to pharmacies electronically, eliminating the hassles of handwriting prescriptions (Manasse, 2005). The feature can be applied in the prescription of medications since it helps to reduce medication errors, save time, improve prescription legibility, and support the whole management process in medication.

3. Security and Access Control

This feature deals with various data security measures in healthcare, including encryption mechanisms and user access control. These measures aim at safeguarding the information of patients from being accessed by unauthorized individuals. Therefore, the feature allows the manager of a healthcare facility to give rights to access information or data to the healthcare workers who need the data (Hoffman, 2016). The feature can be applied in healthcare facilities to ensure the privacy of patients is protected as required by stringent healthcare regulations like HIPAA. Through the implementation of this feature, patients increase trust in the facility while the management process minimizes the risk of security breaches.

4. Billing and Revenue Cycle Management

Electronic Health Record systems have evolved a lot in the billing process to help physician offices manage claims, track revenue, and reduce manual errors. Patients are able to track their payments on these systems and know their balances. Healthcare facilities are able to minimize loss of revenue since the management works better while discharging patients by ensuring they clear all the balances (Peden, 2015). The feature can be applied to make it effective to collect revenue, mitigate errors in billing, and provide strong financial management to healthcare facilities. This ensures a sustainable practice in the management of revenue.

5. Clinical Documentation

Patient information and records can be created, maintained, and accessed electronically through this feature. Clinical documentation is very important, and therefore, having electronically stored documents empowers healthcare facilities. These records include comprehensive information on the medical history of patients, progress notes, assessments, and plans for treatment (Peden, 2015). The feature is applied by healthcare providers to ensure there is smooth communication and continuous coordination among physicians. Clinical documentation is a rich source of historical data, making it easier to make decisions based on the data provided, especially for superior patient care.

6. Order Entry and Management

The Electronic Health Records system makes the whole ordering process streamlined. Paper-based records for ordering lab tests, medications, and procedures are replaced by efficient electronic records (Hoffman, 2016). The feature is applied to play various roles in healthcare facilities since it helps to reduce errors, speed up order processing, and improve patient safety since the system supports real-time clinical decision-making.

In conclusion, selecting the best Electronic Health Records system for our physician’s office involves a rigorous process to decide what our facility needs. Through a thorough examination of the functions and applications of the features we outlined above, we can continue with the selection process with details on how the above features will align with our facility’s needs and goals. With the Electronic Health Record system in place, our local facility can improve patient care and improve the efficiency of the operation while complying with healthcare regulations.

References

Hoffman, S. (2016). Electronic Health Records and Medical Big Data: Law and Policy. United States: Cambridge University Press.

Manasse, H. R. (2005). Medication Safety: A Guide for Health Care Facilities. United States: American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

Peden, A. (2015). Comparative Health Information Management. United States: Cengage Learning.