Tips to Transition to a Cloud-based EHR System Smoothly
21st century has been the era of the cloud. From photos, videos to files and documents, all pf our personal digital assets were uploaded to the cloud. This gave us increased efficiency, memory, space and improved features. The healthcare industry has also shifted from paper to automatic systems. Electronic Health Record systems were created to reduce workload and increase efficiency. The advantages of transitioning to an electronic health record system include better records, less paperwork, a smaller environmental impact, and increased productivity all around. When your practice adopts EHR technology, you can even be eligible for a Medicare or Medicaid incentive.
If you are a healthcare provider and you still have not transitioned to a Cloud-based EHR, you are missing out.
Transitioning to a Cloud-based EHR
The benefits of a cloud-based EHR system are undoubtedly large, so much so that your practice not switching to a cloud-based EHR may prove detrimental to the success of your organization. It might be intimidating to implement and switch to a cloud-based electronic health record (EHR). Here are some pointers to make the procedure go more smoothly.
1. Planning for the transition
Not all surprises are sweet. You do not want to break it to your employees that you are switching to a cloud based EHR system. It can be extremely overwhelming. It is best to define a strategy that you can follow for this transition.
Do a workflow analysis of your billing, clinical, and administrative procedures to build your implementation approach. You can create modified workflows for each of these procedures that are compatible with your new EHR system using the knowledge you learn from this research. Learning a new system may make any workplace more stressful, especially if your workforce isn’t tech savvy and aware of the advantages of working in the cloud. It is crucial to assess the adopting stance of the medical team and administrative employees. You should ideally inspire all employees to accept the new technology with an open mind and a willing spirit. It’s a good idea to solicit the opinion of reluctant employees and provide them the freedom to candidly voice any issues.
2. Identify all required changes
You must consider the transition’s physical aspects in addition to any modifications to the workflow. Before you install an EHR system, you should take the following factors into account:
- A power source is required if staff members will be utilizing laptops or tablets to access EHR software. Also, you might have to buy extra tools so that employees can work while other units are charging.
- Before switching to an EHR, be sure that all of the necessary outlets and Ethernet connectors have been installed throughout your office.
- You’ll need computers for staff members to use in order to enter patient data into your new system. Based on your preferences, you may either buy desktop PCs for every area or let staff workers move about with laptops or tablets.
3. Integrate EHR Software with other Systems
When you are switching to an EHR system, you will find that you need to consider integrating your EHR with other software such as medical billing software, revenue cycle management and practice management software.
4. Securing Patient Data
Data security is of the utmost importance. Before making the transition to a new EHR , make sure all your data is secure. Understanding how you will secure your patient data is crucial. If you transfer a portion of your data to the new EHR, make sure you ssk your former vendor how your data will be securely disposed and whether you will have access to that data.
It is a good practice to make one of your doctors or staff members in charge of the data migration process, and have them maintain a close eye on how the data is transported and stored by the old and new EHR vendors, so as not to jeopardies data security and privacy at any point.
5. Data Migration
You must be completely ready for the data migration procedure if you want to avoid problems and guarantee a seamless transition. To ensure seamless data migration make sure you do the following:
- Continuity of care documentation (CCD), a standard for transferring patients’ digital health records between EHRs, should be used by both your old and new EHR vendors. It enables the majority of EHRs to interpret the sent patient data precisely.
- Make contact with both the new and old EHR vendors. Discuss the expenses of data transition, data mapping (from previous EHR to structured fields in new EHR), and any additional subscription costs up front with your old and new EHR vendors.
- Consider your needs for data mapping. Have a detailed plan for transferring all of your patient data to the new EHR’s structured fields. Your workers should find it quick and simple to use the new EHR thanks to the new order. Also, you’ll save money by avoiding future requests for data mapping.
6. Schedule Deadlines
You should be aware of the lengthy and difficult nature of EHR replacement and prepare your employees accordingly. Everyone’s adjustment will be smoother if a long-term plan is made.
It’s also crucial to establish timeframes for each step of the EHR replacement process, including informing staff, gathering comments, choosing a new vendor, attending product demonstrations, addressing issues with the previous vendor, moving data, establishing the EHR, and instructing personnel. Whilst deadlines are crucial, keep in mind that they should be flexible to account for unforeseen events like doctors or staff members having unscheduled leaves of absence during training. Going online when your entire staff is ready to use the new EHR is more advantageous than simply meeting the deadlines.
7. Dealing with Problems
During the implementation process, it is inevitable to run into obstacles and issues. You might be collaborating with organizations that continue to use paper documents. In these circumstances, you must be prepared to scan and upload paper documents to your computer system. It is important to face these issues head-on as your implementation comes into practice.
Conclusion
Transitioning to an EHR, though intimidating, doesn’t have to be expensive or upsetting for your team or patients. You’ll be in a good position to change your practice into a patient-focused, financially responsible medical organization if you choose your vendor intelligently and choose one with a reputation in the industry for exceptional technical assistance and staff training. Choosing the best system not only ensures better transition but a safe and stress-free record system.
