7 Alarming EHR Implementation Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Nowadays, almost every US healthcare specialty has acknowledged the use of Electronic Healthcare Record (EHR) system to streamline their medical and administrative tasks. The challenge is to implement the system accurately and avoid incurring heavy expenditure for its maintenance and support. If you’re planning to implement a new EHR system or an existing EHR system from the scratch, then these are some of the most common mistakes you should try to avoid.

1. Not having an execution roadmap: Many EHR providers will offer a host of features which are not aligned around a specific specialty so start up of the system is difficult to execute because they are trying to provide features for all areas of Medicine. The key is to incorporate custom features aligned with the requirements of your specialty or better yet, purchase a system that is dedicated to your specialty (e.g. Pediatrics).
2. Poor Data Capture: It is really important that the medical records contain the core data for your specialty. For a Pediatric E.H.R. this means the system should store children in families and be able to maintain data for growth charts routinely and in a simple matter. The staff should enter the appropriate data so the provider can view the complete picture of the records.
3. Staff Training challenges: If a simple to use system is purchased, training should be easy to complete online or training videos. The providers, front desk team and Medical Assistants/nurses should all be trained on the system. The practice should identify one person as a ‘super user’. This user should have the most knowledge and be able to answer questions for the other staff members prior to calling support of the EHR vendor.
4. Lack of team communication: One reason that leads to EHR implementation failures is the lack of coordination and communication amongst the staff. Each and every staff should understand their role and how to document their role in the E.H.R. system.
5. No Data backup or Disaster Recovery plan: A lot of facilities still don’t acknowledge the importance of a foolproof data backup or disaster recovery plan. Disasters, be it human or natural, always comes unannounced. Mitigate every possible risk by making your EHR disaster-proof and ensure all of the medical records are secured.
   Not Planning to provide options to connect via Mobile phones: Your administrative burden can decrease if your E.H.R. vendor can integrate features that enhance connection with the staff via Mobile phones.
6. Not choosing the right vendor: How will you make sure that you’ve joined hands with the right vendor? You need to consider certain attributes such as customer review, effective communication, and technical assistance to ensure the EHR is successfully implemented and can be maintained efficiently in the long-run.
   Standardize your pediatric practice management with the competitively-priced EHR system tailored to your medical requirements. Learn more about Pediatric Xpress and other products of Physician Xpress here.