The new EHR systems: determining the best for your practice

6 steps to determine what you want for your practice in the new EHR system offerings … and what you don’t

Selecting a new EHR system can be overwhelming if you don’t really know what you should be looking for. Having had the opportunity to do more than 900 installs over the past 20 years, I find it frustrating to see that most clinics have resigned themselves to adapt their office flow around the capabilities of their software.

This is mainly because they did not take the time to properly identify their needs before starting their quest for the perfect fit. Keep in mind that your EHR system should be integrated with your flow and business rules, not the other way around.

Identify your needs and business flow

Before looking for a new EHR system, you must identify what you like and dislike about your current software. This will allow you to pinpoint the main areas for improvement.

• Do you need more features, more reliability, more flexibility, more speed, more efficiency?
• Is the support exceptional and offered in a timely manner?
• Are you looking to save time with your note-taking or to add more compliant notes?
• Does your front desk staff need more fluidity in finding information about a patient?
• Are you satisfied with your insurance collection rate?
• Are you able to balance your reports at the end of the day?

These are just a few questions you need to ask yourself.

Identify our goals

In the second step, you need to establish what your goals are and if you are ready to reach them. It is important to discuss with your team to be aligned and work together toward these objectives.

For instance, I have never met a doctor who is not excited about growing his practice and being able to see more patients. However, for the staff, when I tell them they can double their practice tomorrow with their new EHR system, this is terrifying. Why? Simply because they don’t have the procedures in place to handle the growth and they are scared about software performance. The software’s efficiency is a key point.

It is not rational to opt for software that takes four clicks to do an action while you can do the same thing with only one click with another software. Multiply those over months, you will see the wasted time in the practice. That is why when my team does a new installation, we make sure we understand the needs and objectives of the practice to properly configure the software. That way, four weeks later, the practice won’t be back to the same level it was before and with the same level of frustration.

Audit the available new EHR systems

The third step is an audit of the EHR systems available on the market, since you must identify the pros and cons and select according to your needs. For example:

• If you are mostly a cash practice, do you need a software that is good at insurance billing?
• If you don’t have a medical doctor or nurse practitioner, do you need a software that is more medically based?
• If you are a pay-per-visit model and schedule one visit at a time, do you need a software that does care plans and books multiple visits?

Take a test drive

The fourth step is to see the software. You can get a demo from a representative. However, it is just as important to talk to other doctors and staff who are using the software.

I always say there is one degree of separation in the chiropractic industry. A colleague can put you in touch with someone if you do not have such contacts. If you can go and visit in person, it is even better.

Ask hard questions like: What do you not like about the software? How is their support if I need assistance? Do they take care of my issues right away or does it take hours or even days to get answers?

Transitioning to new EHR software

The fifth step is to plan the transition to your new software. Then the fun starts, but the real work also.

I see too many offices that purchase software but have not planned the data transfer, the best time to go live, how much time they need for training, etc. They think everything from their previous software is going to transfer over and then miraculously on Monday they will know how to use it and be up and running. This is far from the truth.

Installation — The key to a good installation is to pick a “go-live date.” This date is usually three to four weeks after you have chosen your new software. This will give you time to properly complete your data transfer and training. Make sure training is offered in a variety of ways: video, documentation, online with an agent or on-site with a trainer.

Training — It is important that you are not just a spectator. I see too many training sessions where the staff and doctor are just watching and learning nothing — a training is not a demo. Use that transition period to prepare your go-live day and to configure your software. Make sure your new software company provides a dedicated onboarding agent to assist you in that process. If you have a high-volume clinic (over 500 patients per week) I highly recommend on-site training, if available. The presence of an experienced trainer during the first hours of the go-live will make it easier for you to get through this critical period. In addition, by being on-site, the trainer will be able to more easily adjust training to your office flow and practices, and adapt the setting of your EHR system.

Data Transfer — It is useless to do data transfer if your data is not reliable. Take the opportunity to start with a clean data set. We recommend only exporting what is essential, keeping in mind that some data cannot be transferred if they are encrypted for HIPAA. The only way to get the information is through an export to an Excel or CSV file. It is suggested to proceed with the data transfer as soon as possible so you have enough time to validate it — to configure your new software ahead of time and not under stress. Many offices want to wait until the last minute to reduce the manual entries. However, this cannot be farther from the best plan, as you need to be working and training with your database a few weeks before going live. Keyed-in information is a great practice as you learn faster by doing, not watching.

Going live

This is the final step, and you should have added your scheduled appointments for the day, entered basic information for the patients, and the doctors should be able to see the patients without their old system and know how to take notes.

The faster you get right into the new system and leave the other system behind, the better off you will be. The last thing you want is to be working out of two systems. There will be some insurance claims you may have to post in your old system, but that is about it.

Once you go live, then you begin moving over patient balances, updating visit counts, putting in X-rays and making sure insurance is ready to be billed for patients you have seen that day. Once you have about a week of patients, you have nearly 50% of the active patients in the system. After two weeks you will have about 75%, after three weeks about 90% and after a month about 98% of the active patients in the system and then there is no looking back.

A new EHR system can be an exciting time for your practice but also stressful. Your patients have gone through software changes in their business, so they know what you are going through. Smile, give a great adjustment, and everything else will work out.

MARK LEWIS has been director of sales and on-site trainer for more than 20 years with Platinum System. To learn more, go to platinumsystem.com.