Implementation of:

Jennifer Reynolds HCA/270 3/10/13

Is it time for a change?

Why should this office implement Electronic Medical Records?

Financial Incentives Time Saver Charting Benefits Increases Availability of Information Accuracy

How is EMR implemented?

Step 1 : Choose a software/vendor. Step 2 : Purchase needed hardware. Step 3 : Test the system Step 4 : Train staff on the new system. Step 5 : Go live with the new system and maintain training and support as necessary.

Financial Grants and Incentives

Such Benefits Include: Federal grants, Medicare incentives, Implementation tax credits, EMR stimulus packages Other Financial Incentive Providers Include: National Committee for Quality Assurance The Utilization Review Accreditation Committee The Joint Commission

Capital Expenditure
Requires significant capital to implement EMR, yet lowers long-term expenses.

Advantages Grants and stimulus funds are available for the transition. EMR does follow HIPPA guidelines Reduces expensive lawsuits

Disadvantages Transition requires significant capital. Patient may present concern over privacy. Implementation of a new system takes time and money.

Current Value, Depreciation, and Cash flow

Determine project goals. Estimate project costs and benefits in dollars. Discount the costs and benefits at an appropriate rate. Complete the analysis with a calculation.

Projected Revenue:
EMR increases profits and cuts expenses by Reducing Operating Costs such as: Salary for Medical Assistants, transcriptionists, and Billing and Coding staff. Eliminates the need for overflow chart storage Highly beneficial for: Office visit and Emergency Room Coding Properly uses the correct Evaluation and Management codes. Reducing coding error maximizes revenue.

Return of Investment vs. Overall expense

Disadvantages: Software/Vendor expenses Hardware expenses (New PCs, tablets) Reduction of patient flow during initial phases Training time and costs Annual Support Fees (IT, maintenance, upgrades etc.) Advantages: Projected revenue falls around approximately 8.2 million in savings over a 5 year time period (Wang, 2010). Reductions in errors and expense plus maximized profits and efficiency make the Returns of the initial EMR investment worth it.

Review of Benefits and Advantages:

Advantages the Patient can benefit from: Less wait time, informed physician decisions based on availability of information, Accurate charting, Accurate billing, Overall Improved healthcare Better treatment & decisions Advantages from the Prospective of the Practice: Increased Revenue, reduction of multiple expenses, financial incentives, Significant Return of investment, Time management and efficiency excels, Quality of delivered care increases, and productivity rises.

Additional Advantages of Structured Accurate Organization: Transferring patient information, referral, and prescriptions with ease, while eliminating the need for paper Rx pads and fraud. Increased number of patient seen daily. Increased profits and Reduced operational costs.

Review of negative aspects and disadvantages:

Disadvantages seen by the patient: The EMR devices can be intimidating and distracting to some patients. This may give the patient the feeling the personal aspect is disappearing from care. Some patients fear a breach of their private information online. Disadvantages seen by the practice: Implementation costs and time spent putting the system in place is significant. Annual fees for support from the vendor and depreciation costs of hardware are extensive as well.

Recommendation/Summary
It is my recommendation that implementation of EMR is the best economical solution for any practice.

Reference
Medical Records.com. (2012). What are the Benefits of Electronic Medical Records ?. Retrieved from http://www.medicalrecords.com/physicians/what-are-the-benefits-ofworking-with-emr Medical Records.com. (2012). EMR System Purchase Financing Information. Retrieved from http://www.medicalrecords.com/physicians/what-are-the-benefits-ofworking-with-emr NextGen Healthcare. (2012). NextGen Healthcare . Retrieved from http://www.nextgen.com/Default.aspx?RequestId=8011453f Wang, T. (2010). Running the Numbers on a EHR . Retrieved from http://library.ahima.org/xpedio/groups/public/documents/ahima/bok1_ 047866.hcsp?dDocName=bok1_047866