Many of the doctors as well as physicians nowadays own or have different kinds of laptop or smartphone devices which majorly help them for work-related purposes and EHR which is generally known as (electronic health record system) is one of them.
All you need to know about EHR
What is EHR? It is a kind of digital paper chart of the patient as it includes the real-time information, cantered records that usually make ease of information available to the authorized user or person.
EHR is mainly built to maintain standard clinic and hospital data in particular offices that can include a broader view of the patient’s care. In simple words, we can say that an EHR contains all the medical history, diagnosis, treatment plans or any kind of results that can be used or viewed for the wellbeing of the patient at the right and certain time.
Why EHR Systems are preferred by Physicians nowadays:
Modern electronic records or EHR have multiple advantages for the patient as well as for the doctors. Some of the reasons why doctors and physicians appreciate the use of EHR are mentioned below.
1. Better Records
The information which is being put in an electronic health record is more complete, accurate and easy to be viewed and EHR generally helps a physician or a doctor to get the exact information of the diagnose, report or any kind of treatment-related issue also it has been seen that the other staff of the hospital or any other field don’t have to interpret the handwriting which they cannot read or understand.
2. Ease of Mobility
Doctors or physicians both don’t have to tie to their office desk anymore, with a Help of electronic health records a doctor can have access to their patient records from any part of the world. They can even finish their task in cars, buses or any public transport when they are traveling. Also, they are very convenient for sending an important message to the patient. Many of the EHR in the market come with capability features with any smartphone or tablet and provide more flexibility to the time and energy.
3. Sharing Responsibility
Technology is always found helpful for the patient to take more and accurate initiative in managing their records and diagnosis for their care. One of the burdens which mostly come with the doctor or physician is that they are eased by the EHR system. When an electronic health record system is combined with practical management it reduces the data entry for both clinic staff and office which conserves a lot of time and energy.
4. Condense Paperwork
The most useful benefit of using an electronic health record is that it preserves paper-based tasks such as handwritten prescription or office notes as it has been seen that most of the handwritten prescriptions are not easy to understand by clinical staff or a person and cannot be shared easily most of the time. With the help of EHR, one caregiver can easily understand the language with a few simple clicks although the data structure which is managed by modern-day EHR is easier to understand and well functioned.
5. Increase Productivity and Investments
An electronic health record or EHRs can eliminate much expense such as transcription and significant cost which are generally made by paper charts. EHRs mainly enable physicians to reap the significant cost and budget-saving as they also emphasize productivity by allowing more patients to be seen multiple times. Also, it keeps a doctor or physician to get in touch with daily reports, follow-ups, and maintaining leads that affect productivity. Besides the physician or therapist who adopts the proper license and certified EHRs systems can benefit from governmental incentives.
Some of the Minor Disadvantages
Many of the electronic health record systems come in numerous ways as they also have some disadvantages with them:
- Potential privacy and security issues have been seen in EHRs systems.
- Another major concern is how a normal patient uses and identifies the data on the portal of EHRs as many of the people are not that technology-friendly. It is very important to make sure that such a patient does not miss a match or make any kind of error in the important entries.
- Also handling an EHR system is not an easy task. Many of the staff or clinic members may not be able to use them competently as it requires several months and years to properly identify the EHR systems.
- Initially for smaller clinics that prefer things on paper can cause confusion between the documents. But yes if you properly learn once how the EHR system works then it will become an initial curve to your knowledge and learning and the result will be far better than before.
Is Using the EHR system Helpful? Final Thoughts
An Electronic health record system host a lot of benefits as we have discussed in the above paragraphs that why it is being loved by top physicians and experts nowadays also an EHR system benefits the medical practices and growth to the revenue model without consuming too much time and energy on a various task such as maintaining bills, documentation, reports or any kind of patient-related issues. EHRs are made for the welfare of both the clinical staff and patient; it narrows the connection between understanding the bridge gap which is generally seen with doctors or physicians.
But the question is that, is using EHRs the right way to conserve time and energy? The answer is yes as EHR systems are widely in use now. Many of the hospitals and clinics are using this kind of advanced software to maintain a sustainable record of the patients which helps them on a daily basis. Although using the right software will never let your expectations down. Once you understand how an electronic health record system works then you will get to see massive results in your work as it is very important to understand function and tools before you require practice.