What Advantages Do Electronic Medical Records Software Serve?

According to the CDC, more than 80% of office-based physicians have some sort of Electronic Medical Record system. And nearly all private hospitals have adopted digital record keeping software for more efficient healthcare service.

On that note, here’s a list of the leading EMRs across the world and what makes them the top contender:

Leading Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) and What Makes them Preferable?

1. Epic Systems

The reason Epic CRM Systems is the leading EMRs in the world is due to its vast range of healthcare specialities and departments. Epic also makes it simple to share information within applications through an interoperable and scalable interface.

More importantly, Epic is one of the oldest and reliable healthcare software providers since its inception in 1979. Since its inception, Epic has gone on to become one of the most advanced medical record software, complete with AI and intelligent automation.

2. Cerner

Cerner has the second largest market share after Epic and a proven work record of extensive experience in the healthcare industry. Cerner was acquired by Oracle in 2022 and offers a comprehensive set of tools for managing patient health records. Cerner is best suited for larger hospitals and clinics, thanks to its scalable solution and integrated data management options. Cerner is also acclaimed for its user-friendly interface and extensive functionalities.

3. Meditech

Meditech captures around 16% of the total market share and comes at the third most preferred EMRs out there. The software is designed to streamline clinical workflows and improve patient care practices.

Meditech is one of the most rewarded EMRs with 10 consecutive best in KLAS Recognition.

EMRs offer dynamic advantages over the traditional paper-based record keeping system. But what are these advantages? And how healthcare providers can use EMRs to deliver an ideal patient care?

In this blog, we attempt to answer these questions and offer our views on the worth of EMR adoption in the modern healthcare scenario.

Let’s dive into it:

How Electronic Medical Records Help Streamline Patient Care?

EMRs are at the center of modern medical practices. From establishing patient-doctor relationships and improving accuracy to supporting clinical decisions and allowing seamless access to information, modern healthcare wouldn’t be modern without EMRs. They offer a range of benefits that can help improve healthcare both in the long and short term. Here are a few of the major advantages that EMRs provide:

⦿ Convenience

First and foremost, an EMR system offers unparalleled convenience over its counterpart, the traditional paper method of record keeping. With a digitized approach to record keeping, healthcare professionals get a centralized space to manage patient data, appointments, prescribe medicine, interact with patients, and do much more.

EMRs also offer quick and accurate access to all the relevant information about the patient so doctors or healthcare providers can focus on more important tasks at hand rather than securing the right information.

With EMR, doctors can simply search for the patient and be greeted with all the patient information in one place. This saves time and effort that one might otherwise waste in flipping through paper records.

All in all, EMRs tend to simplify the day-to-day tasks of the healthcare providers, which, in turn, makes it convenient for patients to connect and access the best healthcare.

⦿ Reduced Errors

EMRs significantly reduce the chances of errors, thanks to the more direct and efficient approach to patient data and healthcare in general. With EMRs, physicians have access to up-to-date customer data at their fingertips which helps them make more informed decisions and limit the chances of errors in patient care.

EMRs are a collection of a patient’s medical data collected over years of their healthcare process. That means, healthcare providers can comb through the data and have a succinct synopsis of the patient’s condition and treatment plan just ahead of the appointment. This synopsis would include all the relevant diagnoses, medications, lab results, appointments and social determinants of health to help the provider deliver complete and error-free care.

⦿ Improved Patient Experience

All the functionalities and features that EMRs offer come down to making the patient experience better. When doctors or healthcare professionals have access to extensive customer data, they tend to interact with the patient in a more informed and insightful manner. This, in turn, helps patients gain confidence in the services they are getting and makes them more forthcoming about their situation. In this way, patients are often engaged in the decisions that doctors make about their well-being.

Not to mention, patients themselves have access to their data through patient portal functionality, which further adds to the patient experience in their overall healthcare.

EMRs also acknowledge the fact that there is no one size fits all when it comes to health care. With EMRs, healthcare professionals can customize the care they offer as per the patient’s needs and preferences. With the extensive amount of data stored in EMRs, patients are more likely to receive a more personalized care that aligns with their taste, lifestyle, and health objectives.

⦿ Better Healthcare

EMRs drive better healthcare by facilitating information in a more refined manner, helping build relationships between the doctor and the patient, and enhancing workflow. All of this combined helps elevate the quality of healthcare professionals provide with the help of EMRs.

Firstly, EMRs offer a data-backed, insightful analysis of the patients’ state of affairs, allowing doctors to make informed decisions and deliver constructive care. It also helps them build trust and understanding with the patient. Moreover, charting, medical notes, and consultation letter templates help other members of the team stay up-to-date with legible, structured information. Patient portal and personal health records also help patients engage in managing their own care.

EMRs also tend to improve how a doctor or a healthcare professional works. EMRs allow professionals to see a larger number of patients through better access to comprehensive patient history. EMRs also offer better remote care, improved laboratory results availability, medication error alerts, and healthcare reminders.

Factors that You Should Consider when Choosing an EMR

EMRs, despite being an undisputed upgrade to the traditional healthcare tech, are not perfect. And therefore choosing the right EMR becomes ever more important. Not all EMRs are made the same and which one you choose can come down to the kind of healthcare services you are offering and which specific features you need. Let’s take a look at some of the important factors to consider before choosing one:

⦿ Cost

Firstly, you need to consider the price bracket for your EMR. A proprietary ERM typically starts at $5000 and can go up to $30,000, depending on the specific needs it serves and features it comes with.

In order to figure out the right cost for your EMR, understand your specific needs with the system and figure out the exact features you would need.

If your needs are more general, you can also opt for open-source EMRs. Open-source EMRs are cheaper compared to the proprietary ones and are more suited for general physician needs.

⦿ Learning Curve

Another important factor to consider is the learning curve that most modern EMRs come with. EMRs can be quite difficult to get used to specially for someone migrating from the traditional paper-based medical records.

For instance, entering data into new EMR fields can be quite confusing for people who are interacting with the system for the first time. Not to mention, a new UI can take some getting used to.

It usually takes the staff a week or two of training before they are well-versed with the ins and outs of the system.

⦿ Security

Data privacy and confidentiality is of key importance in healthcare. With increasing demands for healthcare information storage and exchange, the need for data security becomes even more important. When you are choosing an EMR, ensure that the system is HITECH and HIPAA compliant. Moreover, you can also ensure additional security measures by creating data backup, using encryption, and enabling firewalls.

⦿ Integrations

If you want to make the most of your EMR, you will have to integrate it with different third-party systems. What does an EMR integration do? EMR integration connects your EMR with other digital systems or devices to enable seamless flow of information and ensure coordination between two systems.

For instance, an EMR integrated with a medical billing system can share relevant patient data with the system to help assess patient coverage information for easier claim submission.

Similarly, when an EMR is integrated with Lab systems, healthcare providers can seamlessly share lab reports between the two systems and keep a tab on the latest situation of the patients.

Conclusion

There you have it, a brief run through of the advantages of EMR and the factors that affect its functionalities. We hope this article helps you weigh in the advantages and disadvantages of EMR systems and help you make the right choice for your next Electronic Medical Record system.

If you still have questions or want to learn more about EMR integrations, reach out to us at marketing@novelvox.com.