By Pascal Helou
New York, NY - The process begins by reviewing your system requirements created from your current workflow audit. The question you then must answer to help select the proper solution is whether you want a simple Electronic Document Storage solution or a complete EMR/practice management system?
Electronic Document Storage solution
An Electronic Document Storage solution simply replaces your filing cabinets/paper charts with electronic charts. This option is popular in NYC because it is much cheaper (1/20th the cost of a full blown EMR/practice management system) and simpler to implement (can be deployed in a few days).
Doctors and staff continue to capture office visit information using the existing paper forms. The office usually hires a bunch of high school students that spend a few weeks scanning the patient paper records into the system. This process can proceed in parallel with the current office operations without any disruptions. Once all paper records are scanned in, the doctors and staff can access all patient records electronically in seconds from any location. The staff simply scans the paper charts after a patient encounter or at the end of the day as a batch process.
A basic Document Storage solution requires the following:
o $1,000 - Medium end scanner (used by staff for general scanning)
o $3,000-$5,000 - High speed scanner (used for batch scanning)
o $5,000-$10,000 - Electronic Document Storage software
o $3,000 – file server to host Electronic Document Storage software
o $1,000 - training
Total costs $13,000-$20,000 (total costs regardless of number of physicians)
If you are a small office then you can reduce the training, remove the file server for total costs of under $10,000. The system can be setup in 1-2 days. Maintenance costs and support are minimal.
The EMR/practice management solution
The EMR/practice management system is a powerful solution (integrated EMR and complete practice management solution), much more complicated (requires complete understanding of current workflows, systems and processes) and time-consuming to properly deploy (takes anywhere from 6-18 months to deploy).
The typical EMR/practice management system costs $15,000-$50,000 per physician according to a report produced for the California HealthCare Foundation1. The high end EMR implementations that I have worked with have averaged $150,000.
Most of the EMR/practice management systems I have implemented were on large offices connected to hospitals. The Electronic Document Storage solutions have been popular with small medical practices.
Conclusion
Both the basic EMR and EMR/Practice Management solutions have much to offer. The basic EMR can begin to pay for itself in a few days, is easy to implement, is inexpensive and provides an immediate ROI. The EMR/Practice Management solution is expensive, complex, is riskier to implement but carries the highest efficiency gains. What’s best for you depends on the complexity of your workflows, your budget, timeframe and calculated ROI. You can always contact us and we will be happy to give you a free consultation and or point you in the right direction!