Address Potential Issues Before They Confront You
Major workflow disruptions are every practice manager's greatest nightmare and a poorly planned EMR implementation offers many opportunities to fail. Before you schedule your go-live date, familiarize yourself
with the common pitfalls of EMR implementation and take steps to avoid them.
Most catastrophic implementation issues can be traced to one of four areas: Leadership, workflow, training, and infrastructure. What follows below is a closer look at each potential problem area with recommendations to identify and get in front of them before they occur, ensuring a smoother transition.
Let us talk about couple of these areas briefly.
For more details, feel free to download our exhaustive guide on EHR Implementation for small practices.
Leadership
These are tell-tale signs leadership issues may be negatively impacting your EMR implementation.
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Poor decision-making
The leader should understand change management principles, have the technical knowledge to oversee the project, and be empowered for on-the-spot decision-making for most implementation issues. -
Inadequate communication
Your EMR implementation leader should ensure a constant flow of communication between the vendor, clinicians, and front office staff so that all concerns are addressed and all milestones and objectives are clearly explained. Each member of the team should understand the process and his or her role and responsibilities during and after implementation.
Important Resources:
Workflow
This is perhaps the single most important issue affecting productivity and the overall satisfaction and success of your EMR implementation. Be sure each of the following areas are carefully considered and addressed prior to starting the process.
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Inadequate workflow mapping
Your leader should seek adequate input from staff across the care delivery spectrum so that no role or process is overlooked in the workflow map. Account for variables such as who is responsible for gathering and entering various data, how it will be organized in the EMR, and who will need access to it throughout the clinical process. Limit data entry by providers to strictly those processes related to clinical decision-making (ordering tests, entering diagnoses, prescribing medications, etc.). -
Poor delineation of responsibility
Workflow interruptions occur when staff members are unclear about their responsibilities in data gathering, input, and processing. Once you have arrived at optimal workflow procedures, be sure these are carefully communicated to each staff member to avoid confusion, duplication of effort, or missed steps.
Moving Forward
In today's highly regulated and competitive healthcare environment, small practices need a powerful, flexible, and easy-to-use EMR to streamline data collection and reporting, enhance patient care, and consolidate practice management functions to increase productivity. When you choose a RevenueXL’s PrognoCIS EMR for your small practice, we partner with you to design, configure, and customize your system, and create an implementation process that minimizes disruptions and helps you achieve your practice goals.
Click below to download our free eBook on a more exhaustive list of most common snags and glitches in the implementation process and suggestions to avoid them.
