HOW TO SELECT AN EHR FOR YOUR PRACTICE

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Basically, three steps are involved in this process: assessment, planning, and selection.

1. ASSESSMENT - what do you want, what do you need, what can you afford?  Assess the practice to identify opportunities to improve processes for patient care, improve your staff morale and integrate health care informations technology into your practice.  Decide whether or not to use outside help  - such as the regional extension centers established by the HITECH Act or a private consultant - to assist you in finding the best product for your specific needs.

2. PLANNING - Identify goals, priorities, and barriers.  Identify what are your highest priority needs, features and functions of an EHR from the practice perspective.  Make your staff aware of the anticipated changes in processes and workflow and seek their input regarding specific priorities you may not have identified.  Consider how to handle legacy paper charts and new paper-based data that will inevitably accompany new and follow-up patients.  One of the options you can consider is to scan patient charts, thus making an electronic image which may or may not be searchable.

3. SELECTION - Be certain of your practice's requirements before making a final decision.  Do you need a new billing system (practice management system)?  If you do not, does your current practice management system support an interface to an EHR.  If you are happy with your current practice management system, do not believe high-pressured sales pitches that indicate you must use an integrated practice management/EHR package.  Focus your decision on the activities you do 95% of your time.   Consider what your employees indicate their needs are:  e.g. email, instant messaging, patient education tools and forms.  Remember that there is no guarantee that even the maximum Medicare or Mediaid incentive payments will totally cover the costs of implementing an EHR.

A final suggestion would be to issue a Request for Proposal.  This will structure the selection process and allows the risks and benefits to be identified clearly up front.