Electronic Medical Records: The Woes of Paper
| posted by Rachel GroverElectronic Medical Records, it's about change
Are we forgetting the hassles of yesterday? A time when
paper ruled our lives; some say it seemed much simpler to deal with a sheet of
pulp rather than a seeming endless stream of data from the electronic world.
Perhaps we have forgotten how easy it is to destroy a piece of paper; fire,
water, dirt, coffee, etc. all has detrimental effects on the life of a piece of
paper. Not to mention that if one piece is lost the places it could have ended
up are infinite. It could be anywhere from under your desk to the waste basket
to an unsuspecting lady's purse when she unconsciously stuck it in her bag and
is now headed down Main Street.
Paper is not perfect as a matter of fact it could be
argued that it can be as unreliable as technology. Paper has no built in
security devices; paper will not force someone to fill it out in the correct
format, there are no second chances with paper and paper travels very slowly.
Surprisingly the health field, where it is known that technological advances
are made every day, is still leaning heavily on the crutch of paper. The
solution? Electronic Medical Records (EMR).
Electronic Medical Records are about moving information
quickly and conveniently. Everyone in the health field needs reliable and quick
ways to move information around to open more of their time to solving the
problem at hand. Features found through Electronic Medical Record Software will
not only ease the transmission of information but can immediately start saving
you money. As it eliminates the need for extra resources in a company and make
visits more efficient.
Most software has voice recognition capabilities that will
completely erase the need for transcription of your dictations. Also it can be
helpful to a business to be able to track where their consumers experience the
majority of holdups in their system. Once a problem area is identified a
solution to make it more efficient can be a reached thus making the entire
process easier to navigate. In this case that will result in happier patients
and more efficient visits. The right EMR software offers ways to track that
type of important information and can lead you to effective and productive
solutions.
EMR Software runs off of a tablet PC allowing a physician
to carry it in to the room with the patient. The software will house files for
medical histories, prescription information, the ability to request tests such
as MRIs and X-rays all while the doctor is still with the patient in the room.
From the tablet PC you would also be able to order prescriptions and have it
filled before the patient ever leaves the office. That alone is a feature sure
to impress any patient. This edge of the future technology will help to label
any office as a forward thinking, technologically advanced practice.
Are there problems with the software? It would be a lie to
say no. The normal problems that occur often with technology exist. And it will
require additional training for employees to learn how to run the EMR software.
And these systems are still fairly new and so are not completely bug free.
But when weighing the positives and negatives of changing
to an Electronic Medical Record system remember that people, particularly
patients, find comfort in knowing that their doctor is a forward thinking
person. A patient who sees their doctor walk-in with a tablet PC containing
files of information to aid in their diagnosis is more likely to give that
doctor their confidence. And a doctor who has no patient confidence has no
patients.
