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EMR Systems
Eletronic Medical Records Systems
Written by Steve Thompson
An electronic medical records system, or EMR system, improves record accessibility and efficiency, increases patient and physician safety, all while promoting cost savings. There are many different systems on the market, with more coming out every year.
Overview of the EMR system
In most cases, an EMR system is tailored to a specific medical practice, taking into account the physician's specialty, fee structure and other factors. It can be used to organize billing procedures, document patient visits, implement coding procedures, process complaints, write electronic prescriptions and more.
The features available in one system might be radically different from those in another product. Therefore, physicians must be careful about evaluating potential candidates and researching the features that they need to run their offices efficiently.
Pros and cons
The benefits of EMR systems are great, and improve as new technology is implemented in the industry. It is possible with many of these systems to integrate other programs such as Tablet PC, word processing software, spreadsheet software and more, so that all records are kept accurately in digital form.
But efficiency isn't the only benefit. EMR systems improve access to better health care. As one online article about EMR system benefits states, "Important information – such as blood type, prescribed drugs, medical conditions and other aspects of our medical history – can be accounted for much more quickly."
EMR systems can also save lives. Imagine you are on vacation and an accident happens. If the emergency room has access to an EMR system, it can tap into your medical information, giving doctors there much more information about your overall health and speeding care. The federal government even has an EMR system, called VistA, which allows VA hospitals to share medical information about patients.
The major disadvantage of such systems is the startup cost, which will be addressed in the next section.
General pricing guidelines
It is not cheap to implement an EMR system, though they often pay for themselves through work-hour reductions for office personnel, as well as a decrease in errors related to billing and coding. An off-the-shelf package designed for just one or two users might cost anywhere from $4,000 to $15,000.
However, larger offices with multiple physicians will probably spend $15,000-$25,000 on healthcare EMR, and sometimes more depending on the complexity of the office. When you decide you want to pursue this type of software, it is important to know exactly what you want and how you will use it.
Evaluating dealers
For offices with more than two or three physicians, it will be necessary for the dealer to customize your EMR system to ensure compatibility. However, you should still be able to test drive the product before spending any money. A demo CD that allows you to set up a dummy account, for example, will give you an opportunity to try out the features and determine if your current record-keeping system will translate smoothly. You might even be able to conduct a Web-based trial if the dealer supports that type of functionality.
Are you ready to purchase an emr system? Submit a free request for price quotes and get matched to multiple dealers who will try to get you the best deal for your business.