Transitioning To EMR – Is It Worth It?

A lot of healthcare providers in the US healthcare industry as well as in the government are now familiar with EMR or electronic medical records. EMR is a computerized edition of the traditional paper-based medical record of a patient. The EMR should not be confused or interchanged with EHR as both have different entity and coverage. However, both technologies should coexist as they are dependent on each other. The EMR is a software that is composed of clinical data storage area, medical decision making backing, medical terminologies, pharmacy applications, and medical documentation applications that are used by the healthcare providers and medical practitioners in monitoring, documenting, and managing and in delivering care to the patient.

The integration of EMR in the healthcare delivery setting offers a wide array of advantages usually outweighing the cons. One can’t deny how pricey EMRs could get; however, if quality atient care is the concern, purchasing an EMR is but the right thing to do. So why make the transition to EMR?

One good reason to make the shift from conventional medical records to EMR is that it saves a great amount of space. Instead of consuming the whole floor for the storage of patients’ medical records, all records are now kept inside the main computer’s memory. Together with the saved space, there’s also a reduction in the amount of paper used in writing doctor’s orders, documentation, lab results and history taking. It’s not only the hospitals that can benefit with the EMR but also the doctor’s clinics and health insurance companies that handle the patients’ medical claims.

Inter-operability or the ability for all members of the healthcare team who are involved in the management of the patient to coordinate is another advantage of EMR. Healthcare providers who are well-coordinated have less room for redundancy in laboratory testing, drug prescriptions and rendered care as well as prevent the occurrence of medical errors. It’s not only the primary care providers who will benefit from the EMR but also the patients, who are after all the focus of care. EMR also prevents the patient’s specialists from giving contradicting and advises and medical regimen since his medical records are accessed by anyone involved in his care.

Aside from saving space, EMR also saves time. Doctors and nurses can now have instant access to all of the patient’s medical records including his laboratory test results, x-rays, past and present medical histories including drug allergies. Once files are easily accessed the concerned healthcare provider can act right away. EMR is very helpful during patient referrals to other departments, for example: medicine to surgical referral and in urgent situations where the patient is unable to answer questions in cases like unconsciousness or severe injury.

Legibility of patient record is another advantage given by interfacing EMR in the healthcare setting. Oftentimes, nurses complain of undecipherable handwritings of the physicians. Typos can cause errors such as medication errors because of misinterpretation. EMRs onscreen and printed texts are more legible. Loss of data is also avoided with EMR being integrated in the system. All of EMR technologies have back up and recovery systems that automatically stores all of the patient’s data in cases here there is a system malfunction or compromise.

Inspite the common concerns of some people regarding breach of confidentiality, EMR is HIPAA compliant. This means that all of the patient’s medical records are only disclosed and made available or restricted within those who are directly involved in his care. EMRs are always up to date and are also based on the physician’s and patient’s needs.

Nowadays, more and more hospitals in the US and some parts of the globe are starting to integrate EMR in their heath care delivery setting for ease of work flow, time management and optimum patient care.