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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By Sheldon Needle

You know that your medical practice will have to bite the EMR bullet sooner or later (actually, sooner). The digital handwriting is on the tablet, isn’t it? So what is it stopping you from moving ahead at a planned pace rather than being forced into converting your medical practice to an EMR at the 11th hour?

Here are some of the most common obstacles people face in converting their practices to the use of electronic medical record software, and here are some strategies to deal with them or get the process going:

1. How will we migrate from paper to digital images? Conversion of paper medical records to digital format: If you have your eye on an EMR, learn how tolerant it is of varying formats: does it accept PDF files? JPG format? Ascii text files? Extracts from excel files?

Don’t bit off more than you can chew to begin. If you are practice with reams of folders full of paper files to convert, decide how many years back you need to go in getting your EMR up and running. Perhaps you can start with one year of files via EMR? Or perhaps you need to go much further back?

Look into the possibility of having a consultant specializing in data conversion take charge of your files. There are companies that specialize in just such medical data conversions. If you are really desperate, hire your responsible college students, make the specs clear, and pay her decently!!

2. How will we train everyone in such a new system? Training your self and your staff: Once you have chosen your EMR system, engage the company’s own training staff; that way, you are sure you are being oriented in the current system, using the right documentation. Before you chose your EMR, see what kind of training options the company offers. You might go for a short orientation up front, with a good help desk that is available 24/7. Check reliable Electronic medical records ratings to see which companies provide good in person and on the phone / online support

3. Do we have to set up all the hardware and maintain the software? I don’t think we can manage that. Consider a cloud-based EMR solution: If you are reluctant to invest in a server and commit to the upkeep of hardware and software, consider a Web-based EMR solution, in which you log onto an EMR that worries about security, and updates to hardware and software.

4. How can I compare products so that my practice knows what it is getting into? How much can I trust referrals from other practices? Don’t put all of your EMR decision eggs into one basket: While personal referral are extremely helpful and reassuring, not all are meaningful for your unique EMR practice situation. There are many good EMR products to choose from, and each has its strengths, and its weaknesses.

The right choice will depend as much on the nature of your medical practice and the answers to many questions: What is your medical specialty? How many employees do you have? How expensive is the EMR, per year? How much money can you dedicate to investing in your EMR annually? Can you integrate your medical billing software with your proposed new EMR? Can you afford to hire a dedicated IT employee? How comfortable you and the others in your practice are with using an electronic device as the main source of medical input to your system. These are just a few of the many questions you need to ask yourself.

Talk to people in other practices, yes; but learn to ask the right questions and compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges. Great EMR comparison tools are available to you at no charge, and they can educate you to ask the right questions and maintain a solid baseline for comparison when choosing an EMR.

Many EMR experts — both on the user side and the training side – agree that comprehensive training in the specifics of EMR software — or the absence of it, can be one of the most costly aspects of the transition from a paper based medical practice to an EMR /EHR.

Making the move to an EMR, and failing to train your staff adequately, can sour your entire staff, top to bottom, on the use of the EMR. You certainly need to avoid such a situation.

Here are some considerations and precautions to keep in mind and to discuss with your EMR vendor when evaluation the purchase or leasing of an EMR / EHR: Some of them will surprise you:

1. Your youngest and least academically sophisticated employees will probably have the least trouble learning to use your EMR. That is because they are computer savvy, and are used to texting, apps, and intuitive computer use. Your most sophisticated applications may be used by your least computer-savvy users: older doctors and nurses. Do not assume that they will know what to do without training. Do not allow your vendor to talk away the need to train your most senior employees.
2. Make sure your implementation schedule is reasonable. Do not allow your vendor to move the implementation along too quickly. Allow people time to practice functions before you go live, and don’t forge ahead with the next module’s implementation until most employees achieve a comfort level with the first.
3. Stagger your training schedule to match your implementation schedule. Training in the use of an EMR system is something that cannot be boxed off into a space of time. If you are staggering your implementation into stages (that is, implementing different modules at different times) makes sure that your training schedule is staggered to accommodate the different implementation phases.
4. Training is never one-size-fits-all for a medical practice. There is no point in offering all of your employees the same nature and level of training. Carving up the training pie carefully is critical. Careful implementation planning will, in the end, save you money.
5. If some of your staff needs training in basic computer skills, have someone less expensive than your vendor offer such training. Get a skilled college student to teach a class, or find an adult education class for your computer illiterate employees. Save the expensive training for more sophisticated applications.
6. Never rely on memory to keep track of training lessons. Request formally prepared training material to be distributed to your staff. Record the training sessions – audio and visual — for later use. If there is no prepared training material available, appoint a staff member to gather notes, handouts, etc. in a binder that can be used for reference.