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Electronic Health Records (EHR) are understood to improve the quality and efficiency of patient care. However, according to a recent article published by the New England Journal of Medicine, surveying all acute care hospitals that are members of the American Hospital Association, less than 2% of 3,000 hospitals surveyed have full health information technology systems in place, while about 8% use a basic EHR in at least one care unit that includes physician or nurse notes (Article (10.1056/NEJMsa0900592) was published at NEJM.org, N Engl J Med 2009;360.). While the use of EHR is more prevalent in large physician groups in the USA, three-fourths of the nation’s doctors work in small practices of 10 physicians or fewer. The adoption of EHR among the small medical practices has been even lower. The primary deterrents being (A)significant start-up and maintenance costs of EHRs currently in the market (B)support and maintenance of systems and (C)need for customizations specific to individual medical centers’ clinical functions, combinations of functions, complex billing and reporting needs.
The Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act, a component of the vast federal stimulus legislation known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), authorizes roughly $36 billion in outlays over six years for health information technology-an unprecedented investment in the nation’s health information infrastructure. The Obama administration is trying to jump-start the adoption of EHR with $19 billion of incentives in the economic stimulus package. This includes incentives to medical practices for the adoption and meaningful use of EHRs. However, a March 2009 Avalere Health study (www.avalerehealth.net) warns that health IT funding included in the federal stimulus package might not be enough to encourage doctors to invest in electronic health records. According to the study, it would cost about $124,000 for a single physician or small practice to upgrade to EHRs between 2011 and 2015, but incentives would total only $44,000.
NewCreationIT will work with small medical centers to develop a customized medical practice management and EHR system that:
(A)will have low startup and maintenance costs thus encouraging small medical centers toward EHR adoption so as to derive direct financial benefits from the federal stimulus package,
(B)will enable support and maintenance of systems to be fully outsourced, with no burden placed on the medical centers, and make ongoing enhancements to meet federal requirements as and when they are released and modified and
(C)will allow customization specific to individual medical centers, so that the practice management and EHR systems are tailor made for the medical center.
(D)ensure ongoing complilance to criteria for federal incentive payments as policies and standards are established. These include,
ensuring that the software is Certification Commission for Healthcare Information Technology (CCHIT) certified
submission of information on clinical quality measures
participation in Health Information Exchanges (HIE)
ensure interoperability includes e-Prescribing, laboratories and clinical summaries needed for continuity of care.
(E)interface with web-based Personal Health Records (PHRs), such as those provided by Google, Microsoft, and Dossia, as these gain wider acceptance. These PHRs are secure, protect confidentiality, and are automatically updated by labs, pharmacies, hospitals, and clinician offices.
Contact NewCreationIT for your customized Medical Practice Management - EHR System. Email us at: business@newcreationit.com