How to Find Right EMR Vendor?

Health Care providers know the value of perfect EMR vendors

How to Find Right EMR Vendor?

Now a day, physicians have different choices to select a perfect vendor as there are approximately 400 vendors working in the health care market. But on the other hand, it is also very difficult for physicians and doctors to pick correct EMR vendor. According to the HIMSS, there are some guidelines, by following which a physician can get help to select right EMR vendor.

First to Know About Your Needs

Before choosing EMR vendor, make sure about your functional needs. Write down at least 10 to 20 functions you want an EMR to do for you. Make your EMR mission statement and write some priorities in it.

Make Shortlist of Functional requirements

Convert your basic need’s list into scorecard, and write notes of each category for each vendor you want. After that, prepare simple scoring system and assign each category. Also evaluate all vendors according to this list.

Pick out of Vendors

Now after making the list of your functional requirements, create a list of EMR vendors about which you want to know. Now here the question arises that how to get knowledge about vendors choices?

It is very easy to know about the vendors now a day. Many medical companies and organizations allow professionals to discuss their work experience with the vendors and their progress honestly.

It is very easy to determine the quality of vendors by visiting websites of vendors like, business, money they use in research, their number of clients and other.

It is also very important to know about vendor if the vendor is active in certification commission for health care information technology (CCHIT) and EMR leadership tasks forces like, Electronic Medical Records Vendors Association (EHRVA). These recommendations and searches would help you to know if that vendor is perfect one.

Discussion with the other colleagues, visiting the companies that are using the same EMR you are thinking to use, will help you to choose the EMR vendor.

Organizing Product Demonstration

Once you decided which vendor you are going to choose, arrange some product demonstration for them. Ask them to show their system during the demonstration, meanwhile some offers you to see their products via internet.

For the successful product demonstration, follow the given guidelines;

·        Try to spend at least 2 hours with the vendors for discussion.

·        Try to avoid any kind of interruptions during the discussion like phone calls, messages etc.

·        Be up dated about the products either yourself or get some helper for that.

·        Clearly discuss your points, your demands what you want to get and what kind of work you want.

·        Ask your vendor to keep the record of this demonstration with you. This will help you later.

Getting a perfect EMR vendor is not an easy task. This takes some time and some effort. But once you chosen your perfect EMR vendor, this would be your lifetime security of work.

Working on Budget

After selecting the product, budget comes next to getting it. The budget consider following general points;

Hardware

Most of the physicians need to upgrade their hardware to run the EMR without any distractions or problems. This would be the duty of your vendor to inform you that what kind of hardware you need to run that EMR? Now make planning on the cost of hardware upgrades including scanner, printer etc.

Skilled Provision

After getting perfect EMR vendor, discussing and finalizing all rules, you may need some expertise, including project manager, technology professionals and others.

Looking after

Somehow EMR vendors charge a percentage of software fees which is about 18%-25% annually. This is to regular upgrades, patient’s education and drug database upgrades.

E-Prescribing

E-Prescribing has the capacity to send error free, accurate and logical prescription to pharmacy, for the point of care.

E-Prescribing

Electronic Prescribing or e-Prescribing has just taken place of the traditional papers and faxed prescriptions. E-Prescribing is basically the computer based medical prescription, which allows physicians, doctors, nurses and medical technologists to electronically communicate with the patients. E-prescribing has the capacity to send error free, accurate and logical prescription, straight forward to the pharmacy, for the point of care. We can say that it is an essential element to improve the quality of patient care. It decreases the risks which are associated with the traditional prescription work. E-Prescribing is one of the main reasons to push the Electronic Medical Records, which use to connect the patient with the team of health care providers to assist informed decision making.

Main components of e-Prescribing

The basic components of e-Prescribing system are;

·        Prescriber- A typically a person.

·        Transaction Hub

·        Pharmacy with fulfilled electronic prescribing software.

·        Pharmacy Benefit Manager (EBM)

Benefits of e-Prescribing

E-prescribing proposes clinicians an influential device for security and competently handling their patient's medications. Compared to paper-based prescribing, e-prescribing can improve patient safety and medication agreement; improve recommending accurateness and effectiveness, to reduce health care costs through avoided adverse drug events and substitution of less expensive drug alternatives. Following are some main benefits of e-Prescribing.

Improvements in Patient’s Quality care

A hand written prescription has been eliminated, which actually increases the risk of medication error. E-prescription helps to improve the quality of patient’s safety, as it is completely digital, the chances of error are less as compared to written material. It allows to access patient’s medical health records and their medical history.

Decreasing the Time

While working with the e-Prescribing, it is assured that the time limit must be reduced. E-Prescriptions saves the time.  E-Prescribing are used to decreased the number of pharmacy call-backs, which are related to the ineligibility, pharmacy benefits, wrong prescription choices, reducing the amount of wasted time on phone. This impact positively on the efficiency of workflow.

 Prescription Renewal Request

By the usage of e-Prescribing, it is an automatic process of renewal authorization that provides benefits to both physicians as well as the patients. Within the limited resources, they can accomplish a medication renewal task while improving constant patient documentation.

Increasing Medication Submission

It was noticed that 20% of paper based prescription orders went unfilled because of the limited time, dropping off the paper and to waiting for it fulfillment.  By eliminate or decrease the number of this waiting period, this will definitely increase the performance of this process which may result in patient’s satisfaction.

Challenges and Limitations

E-Prescribinghas an ability to work properly in the field of health records. But still it is facing some challenges and limitations which includes;

·        The main challenge of e-Prescribing is change management. The changing between papers based prescriptions to the e-prescription. It seems difficult for its users to switch suddenly paper based prescription into e-prescriptions.

·        Choosing the correct hardware and software applications is very scary task. Many have access to information technology, to get to know how to start? , correct vendor selection and meaningful use.

Unplanned documents entry errors such as choosing the wrong patient or connecting on the wrong choice in a list of options of quantities may occur. Software vendors should frequently review user reactions and monitor best practices in user boundary plan.