Best Electronic Medical Records Software

The current medical science has matured in their approach for treating the patients, and it has strengthened the therapeutic capabilities of healthcare institutes. The result of which the medical conditions are now diagnosed early and cured before it becomes critical, the patients are getting personalized care, and the physicians are attaining more patients than before. 

The system has become more organized, responsive, and effective. In short, the new approach is pouring new life to the fragile health care system. It is all possible because the professionals have found the root cause of the problems and worked on it tirelessly.  A well managed patient medical record helps the healthcare professions to carry out their diagnosis, clinical, and patient management effectively.

• Paper files: It is an exhausting task sorting patient record from the heap of files resting on each other and preserving those records for generation
• No data backup: There is no provision for data backup, when a patient record is lost the professionals have to repeat the entire process  
• Patient’s data security:  Since the physical records are not password-protected, the unauthorized access to the patient's record can compromise the patient’s confidential information.
• No uniformity: There is no uniformity maintained in noting down the patient’s critical information. 
• No compliance: With manual medical records, there is no policies or compliance over managing patient’s records safely and securely.  
• Difficult to collaborate and communicate: When several departments work on the same record, then collaboration is extremely difficult while working with paper documents. It may require printing multiple copies of the record. Since all documentation is done on the paper, the staff members cannot track patient information in real-time due to which the communication would be fragmented and may risk transferring the wrong information.

The best way to mitigate this would be to invest in Electronic Medical Record software.

EMR software is a computer system that assists healthcare professionals to manage patient medical records and automate clinical workflows. The participants in the health care delivery system involve patients, health care providers, government agencies, insurers, and claims processors. Unlike the EHR solution, the EMR tool does not allow sharing electronic records with other organizations. An EMR solution usually allows physicians and clinicians to manage patient charts easily,ePrescriptions, billing, and electronically send orders for medical tests, lab work, and consultations.

• Patient reason for the visit and vital Signs
• Patient medications/ Controlled drugs 
• Allergy documentation 
• Surgical/medical history
• Physician visit
• Lab test orders
• Patient instructions 
• Billing

EMR solution is an invaluable investment for patient care. It can be deployed on-premise as well as on the cloud.  EMR software is not just helpful in facilitating patient’s care but also improves communication between physicians and their team members. The prescription in a clear format reduces the medical error and conflict among the team members.

EMR

• The digital record stays in the doctor's office and generally does not get shared with other health care facilities. If a patient switches doctors, his EMR is unlikely to follow.
• EMR software enables users to enter details about a patient’s medical care, including prescription medications and laboratory reports. EMR systems are more commonly used to schedule appointments, repeat prescriptions, and bill patients.

EHR

• An EHR (Electronic Health Record Software) holds the patient's records from multiple doctors and presents a more holistic view of a patient's health
• EHR system allows to perform all the activities that EMR does plus it is designed to be accessed by all individuals involved in the patients care, including the patients themselves
• Unlike EMR, EHR software allows a patient’s medical information to travel with them to different health care specialists, imaging facilities, labs, pharmacies, and more.

One of the big barriers to the adoption of the EMR software is the failure to redesign the clinical process and workflow to incorporate the technology systems.

The basic workflow of EMR software explains the sequence of steps and hand-off taken within the process.

The in-depth EMR workflow for appointment and registration, patient’s treatment and diagnosis, patient admission during an emergency, laboratory test, and insurance claim could be elaborative, and explaining each in detail may take an entirely separate session. For general understanding, let’s see a basic workflow for EMR software.

Workflow for EMR,

Step 1) The patient enters the hospital/ clinic.

Step 2) Helpdesk checks patient detail,

• New patient  - The patient is proceeded with the registration process, followed by Nurse  checking medical history (allergies) as well as  past treatment information and at last sent to the physician for a checkup
• Regular Patient -  The patient is sent directly to the physician for the checkup

Step 3) Physician- Proceed with patient diagnosis and treatment procedure

Step 4) Need to perform a blood test

• Yes - Patient will be sent to an in-house technician to perform the test and then therapist/ Nurse- will take patient treatment procedure in hand
• No  - Therapist/ Nurse directly take patient treatment procedure in hand 

Step 5) In house pharmacy - Medication is dispensed as per the prescription.

Syep 6) Front- office- Billing is processed

Step 7) The patient pays the bill and exist from the hospital/clinic

• It reduces the use of paperwork and serious problems with physical storage
• It enables rapid transfer of patient health information to distant locations
• Accurate information about the patient can be given to researchers and health planners 
• Besides the ability to store huge data, the centralized data systems reduce the loss and damage of medical records. 
• The e-prescription saves money and time for both providers (physicians) and patients both
• Patients can immediately receive electronic copies of their healthcare information upon request.
• The healthcare professionals can have a comprehensive understanding of the patient's medical history and current state of health.
• Data that are adequately backed up preserve the data even during a natural disaster.  
• EMR software systems can provide links to content, images, and videos, that eventually help patients to better understand their specific healthcare situation.
• EMR helps to process accurate and complete billing
• 24/7 access to patient profile through computers or mobile devices

The below-mentioned features add value to the medical record software, but the choice of the features may vary depending on the scale of operation. The healthcare professional managing a small clinic may or may not need some of the listed features, while a big hospital or healthcare institute may ingrain all of them.

• Flexible pricing models
• Capable of tracking patient demographics ( Primary information, insurance coverage, primary provider, etc.)
• Maintain security and privacy of patient health information 
• Support for SSL certificate and HIPAA compliance
• Sends patient appointment alerts via email and SMS
• Maintains patients past history, and allergies to food or medication 
• Send and receive patient's medical records via direct messaging
• Generate, send and track patient prescriptions and medications
• Allows flexible coding system for codes like CPT, HCPCS, ICD9, ICD10, etc. ( applicable to U.S.A) 
• Allows to write prescriptions for controlled substances,  drug diversion, reduce drug abuse, etc.
• Support electronic billing and should synchronize well with the healthcare organization ( hospitals, clinics, etc.
• Populate real-time data 
• Support for multi-language 
• Accessible from any type of mobile devices
• Interface for medical claim management, accounts receivable and EOB entry
• Allow to edit and sign a document online
• Third-party tool integration like “mailchimp” for marketing purpose
• Equipped with automatic backup and disaster recovery
• Easily connect with the patient through video-conference
• Facility to capture, save, access, and share imaging data and multimedia within the ecosystem
• Automatic scheduling of work for staffs 
• Robust customer support and services
• Scalable enough to meet both large and small hospitals need
• Privilege based access
• Task management capabilities

Step 1) Research EMR software

The small and large scale health institutes may have different views on the choice of software selection.  Thorough research on EMR is required for a better selection of software. Also, make a choice between cloud and on-premise software.

Step 2) Work-flow analysis and reconfiguration

For best use of the EMR system, health-professional and team members must sit together and analyze the existing work process. Based on the outcome of the discussion, the workflow can be prepared, and a smooth transition plan can be developed.   

Step 3) Facility modification and hardware installation

The EMR software may need facility modification followed by hardware installation as staff may access data from their workplace. 

Step 4) Software Customization

A good EMR system may come with all necessary features; however, some users may have an extra requirement for their EMR system.  The common type of configuration is observed around,

• Security
• Laboratory data management
• Developing a strong backup system
• Input or edit old entries

Step 5) Training and final deployment

The final stage involves staff training and final deployment.  The software may demand training that may continue for 2-3 months, especially when the software is loaded with advanced features. Once they are trained well, the software is ready to use.   

Yes, EMR software can improve the healthcare quality.

It is likely that in the future, healthcare professionals will interact heavily with computers and high-end technology like AI and IoT to refine the service capabilities. Several healthcare professionals claim that EMR has helped them treat more patients and offers numerous benefits like remote access to patient records, medication error alerts, improved laboratory result availability, and reminders of preventive care. Overall the EMR software improves healthcare quality and propagates better communication among physicians, patients, and other team members.

The EMR software has convinced physicians about the exclusive benefits, but still, some are reluctant to adopt the software due to complex interface and higher costs. However, there are software vendors that are giving the best efforts to simplify Electronic Medical Records software usability and lower the product cost.

Performance:

Many health care organizations prefer to use more than one EMR; the reason may not be the inability of software to handle the piles of patient records but the organization requirement. The specialties like dermatology and ophthalmology request specific workflow, documentation, or image capture functions that are not available within “do it all” enterprise solutions. It means at one end of the spectrum; there is an EMR system that meets the needs of highly specific users. At the opposite end, there is a vendor’s universal solution used for general clinical use. So it is difficult to measure the performance of a “do it all “solution and enterprise-level on the same scale. The performance metrics for both could be different. However, there are performance metrics one can use to map EMR software performance.

Key metrics for EMR software performance,

• Number of users login capabilities 
• Zero percent network latency
• Protection against security threat
• Real-time data updates
• Sending alerts and notifications on software updates 
• System scaling ability
• Easy data migration and retrieving capabilities
• Minimum response time regardless of device (mobile, tablets or computer)
• Minimum maintenance cost

The EMR software performance is about understanding the end user’s requirements and building them with pin-point accuracy.  For which it is necessary that software developers and clients communicate continuously with each other. They must ensure that there is a minimum latency period and maximum usability. For example, the emergency form should allow submission with minimum clicks and documentation so patients can be admitted quickly. It not just reduces the admission time but also makes software fast to respond. A lack of maintenance and updating processes could hamper software performance.

Availability:

Technology is progressing at a breakneck pace, and at an equal pace, the software solutions are released. For any software product, their availability is crucial.

An EMR software failure can cause significant disruption at a hospital, making it hard for doctors to access prescriptions, evaluate x-rays, process laboratory results, etc. For any EMR, regardless of how robust the system is, the possibility of downtime cannot be neglected. However, the user can take a few precautionary steps or contingency plans to reduce software availability.  The contingency plan should be for both - long term system outage and short term system outage.

The contingency plan may include a regular audit of the system, checking the supporting softwares and hardware at a regular interval, additional power back-up,  availability of paper forms before downtime, planned downtime communication strategy via email, the organization should conduct tests to ensure data can be reloaded quarterly, conduct downtime drill yearly, etc. The part of the contingency plan also involves taking data back-up in case of a system crash.  The backing-up of data from an EMR is more complicated than copying the data to a disc.  Before buying an EMR system, make sure the vendor has adequate resources and procedures to back up the data.
 

Security:

Security is invariably the most critical factor in the healthcare organization. It is a priority for any health care organization to secure their patient data. The EMR software offers better control over patient information. The software lets the user encrypt the patient’s data making it unreadable to the person accessing it without permission. The security becomes even robust with two-factor authentication and a strong login password. With  EMR software, it is possible to conduct the audit trail that quickly determines who has accessed a patient’s records.

Undoubtedly, the electronic medical records (EMRs) systems help address the security issues associated with traditional medical records.   

EMR software vendors usually do not disclose pricing information on their websites; instead, they prefer contacting their sales team. It is difficult to decide on a particular EMR before knowing the hospital’s or physician’s priorities. The software users have to work on many questions like, 

• Whether the user is interested in integrating practice management applications, such as billing and scheduling?
• Who will access the system nurse, doctors, physician assistants?
• How many users need unique logins?  
• Does any feature require customization?
• Does a user want fully automated software or limited automation?

The total cost for implementing the EMR system with technical support could be anywhere between $25/ month to $500/ month, depending on the feature list. There is also a high-end software solution that may charge users as much as $35,000/ per month. This high-end solution is usually used by major healthcare organizations or hospitals.

The healthcare organizations having minimum budget can settle with software like Zenchart, Theraplatform, while the mid-range tool may involve BHC-Portal, TherapyNotes, RXNT, whereas the users having a preference for high-range tools can select among Praxis EMR, ElationEMR, eclinicalworks, etc.  

The free and open-source software are available, but the users have to verify if there is any hidden cost levied on it.  A free and open-source is a great option to avoid vendors-lockin.

GoodFirms is a well-known review and rating platform that lists the best IT solutions covering various domains. The consumers get a bird’s eye view on the product selection and software vendors a thorough outlook on their product quality.  It has been helping consumers to match their business needs with the list of features and pricing. 

Healthcare professionals focus on improving patient’s health usually  find technology as their best ally. The medical records software helps health professionals to simplify the registration process and other time-consuming manual tasks. GoodFirms list of the best electronic medical records systems for healthcare professionals promises to deliver the best tips that can help you choose the one that suits your requirements.