Implementation Pearls and Resources
By Amy Berlin, MD
If you are thinking about adopting an EHR in your practice, there is one thing you cannot do enough of: plan. Here are some (free) resources to get you started.
The American Academy of Family Physicians Center for HIT (health care information technology) has a host of online tutorials and articles created with the office-based physician in mind. Topics include workflow redesign, EHR vendor selection, and implementation. Other AAFP articles of interest include:
Practicing Without Paper Charts: One Clinic’s Experience
Strategies for Better Patient Flow and Cycle Time
How to Select an Electronic Health Record System
The California Health Care Foundation publishes thoughtful articles and reports on a wide variety of health care IT issues and strategies. Highlights are:
Electronic Medical Records: A Buyer’s Guide for Small Physician Practices
Physician Practices: Are Application Service Providers Right for You?
Clinical Documentation: EHR Deployment Techniques
Open-Source EHR Systems for Ambulatory Care: A Market Assessment
AMA Practice Management resource center including worksheet “15 questions to ask before signing an EMR or EHR agreement”
MIEC’s (Medical Insurance Exchange of California) publication on important questions to ask EHR vendors
For more on the HITECH Act…
Dr. David Blumenthal’s article in the February 4, 2010 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ (CMS) fact sheet on meaningful use
CMS fact sheet on Medicare Incentive Program
CMS fact sheet on Medicaid Incentive Program
CMS HITECH FAQs (sign up for updates when answers change)
Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology blog – HealthIT Buzz
CalHIPSO – California’s Regional Extension Center
KLAS publishes independent research on EHR and other HIT vendors. Practicing physicians can obtain selected reports at discounted rates.
Resources provided courtesy of Amy Berlin, MD
California Watch reports that a bill working its way through the state Legislature would make it more difficult for health care providers to modify or delete electronic medical records and leave no record of the change.
