About the Author

Sheldon Needle is President of CTSGUIDES.COM, a free web site offering reviews, ratings, tools, and expert advice to help companies select software. Sheldon is a former CFO, consultant and software designer who has published more than 20 guides on software selection.

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Getting EMR software training for users at all levels – doctors, nurses, pharmacists, medical coding specialists, hospital administrators, etc. can help you get the most out of your medical software investment.

Sometimes, the choice of which EMR system to use is less important than the “change management” and training plan an organization chooses.

Implementing even the best-designed medical practice management software changes the manner of doing business significantly for a medical practice. It can entail a fairly steep learning curve.

Here are some critical training issues to keep in mind:

1. Make sure that everyone who will use the system gets adequate training.  Good training – or lack thereof – can affect the success of the EMR software within your organization. Both clinical and administrative staffs need to be trained to use the same modules since they will need to exchange relevant information.  If the software is underutilized, it can wind up costing you time and money.
2. Try to get everyone on board and positive about your new EMR software.  If key members are grumbling and not committing to learning their parts of the system, the implementation might not go smoothly. Make it fun.
3. Assess everyone’s general computer skills (the younger employees are probably more able than the older employees – even though they are less sophisticated professionally).  If needed, get training to bring everyone up to basic computer skills level – everyone should be comfortable with use of the mouse, basic graphic interface, hierarchical file structures, password use, etc..
4. Develop your training plan to as part of your overall implementation plan. The plan will have to be driven in part by the skills of the staff.  Appreciate that even the most brilliant and senior physicians may need significant ramp-up time to use the system well. Don’t overwhelm users with too much change and detail too soon.
5. Implementation in phases – rather than overnight – is a preferable so employees can learn at their own pace and feel confident about the software. A functional modular approach to training allows change to happen more gradually.  For instance, you may choose to train and implement a medical billing system first before the full EMR is introduced.
6. Practice makes perfect. After training, dedicate time to letting staff practice what they’ve learned.  If you hire an outside company to train, have them on-site post training to answer staff questions and work through problems.

In short, take the long-term view:  if you view your EMR training time as part of your medical practice management software investment, and you plan your training to fit the needs of your particular staff, your migration to EMR is likely to succeed.