It is time to up the ante.

Yes, when all around you practices are powering ahead with the help of latest technology and professional services why do you have to lag behind with a billing software and outdated Practice Management Software?

Multiple challenges from all directions are trying to drain you of energy, cost and resources. How to take them up heads on, while working towards enhanced patient care, increased billing and collections, and decreased overhead/administrative costs?

Why not opt for an integrated HIS/EMR and Practice Marketing suite? It gives the much-needed fillip to your practice. A combination of commonly given features with ophthalmology-centric process features makes this suite the best candidate for adoption in attaining the organizational goals of improving patient care, enhancing productivity, and optimizing billing and collection.

GENERAL FEATURES OF A GREAT HIS/OPHTHALMOLOGY EMR

Electronic medical records

Using various ready-to-use templates physicians can prepare patient medical records at every point of care digitally. Medical records are updated in real time across departments. These records can be shared among practitioners of that hospital/clinic, and selective viewing by patients through patient portal is facilitated.

E-prescription

Doctor can electronically prepare and send patient prescription to pharmacy directly. This eliminates human error, helps to keep track of patient drug history, and saves time for patients and pharmacists as no re-entry of prescription is required at the pharmacist’s end. Doctors can view the stock and prescribe the suitable available medicines eliminating the use of substitute drugs.

Computerized physician order entry (CPEO)

Doctors can enter further treatment instructions using this function in the patient medical record. These may be lab tests, radiology, or medication details. The system is designed to check for duplicate instructions before sending it to the concerned sections electronically.

Patient portal/mobile app

It’s a safe and secure channel for patients to be in touch with hospital and also access their selective health information anytime from any location, just with an internet connection. Using their login credentials patients can access the system and perform various activities such as appointment scheduling, information enquiry, direct messaging, make payments, and update their profile.

Clinical decision support

EMRs offer clinical decision support by suggesting diagnoses based on the recorded complaints and vision. Most of EMRs check for drug allergies. Some may also recommend alternative treatments or suggest physicians to perform a particular test.

Examination details, investigations required and appropriate medication can be found in the templates to be used as prompts for complicated cases. Diverse reports like medical analysis reports, administrative reports and graphical reports can be generated in specialty EMRs leading to better informed medical decision-making.

OPHTHALMOLOGY-SPECIFIC FEATURES OF TOP-CLASS HIS/EMR

What’s more, there are some fantastic ophthalmology-specific features most of the leading HIS/EMRs have that strongly favor the suite.

Eye care specialties workflow management

Workflow is designed to cater to the needs of ophthalmology specialties, which includes interaction between patient and physician for booking an appointment, and subsequent primary work up by the physician, vision testing examination and other testing, integration of test results into EMR, diagnoses, integration of image workup, e-prescription, corrective lenses ordering and reminders for follow-up visits.

Ophthalmology/optometry templates

Top-ranked EMRs have SOAP (subjective, objective, assessment, and plan) note templates customizable for unique eye care practice needs. These EMRs include optometry templates for eye exam, lost or blurred vision, lens evaluation, corrective laser surgeries, conjunctivitis, corneal conditions and ocular surgeries, among others.

Detailed Eye diagrams

EMR facilitates the physician to document ocular occlusions and other problems graphically by providing scores of detailed diagrams.

Integration of vision testing device

Autorefractor, keratometer and other vision testing devices are integrated to the EMR, allowing instant population of workflow template and supporting diagnoses on the spot.

Coding support and e-prescription

Because of the equipment integration to it, EMR suggests probable diagnoses and apt ICD-10 codes and also recommends prescriptions, decreasing the chances of over or under prescription and inaccurate coding.

Integration with opticals and pharmacy

Some specialist ophthalmology EMRs offer integration with opticals and pharmacy, expediting the sale and inventory management of drugs, glasses and contact lenses.

SEVEN MAJOR REASONS TO ADOPT AN INTEGRATED HIS/OPHTHALMOLOGY EMR

1. Digitize patient records

It improves clinical reporting, clinical decision-making and patient care. EMR helps in creating reports that can identify the ailments without delay, track patient health condition and assess risk factors. It also aids physicians in making an accurate diagnosis of the present condition and advising future course of action.

2. Optimize revenue

While using paper-based charts many of the services rendered are missed and never billed (e.g. service posting). EMR software facilitates capturing of charges for all services provided, thereby optimizing billing, which in turn increases collections.

With the implementation of an EMR the storage space of paper-based medical records is freed, which can be used as additional consultation rooms, generating more revenues with same costs. HIS/EMR provides checks and reminders of patients who are due for recommended consultations or for upcoming annual check-ups, thus boosting patient volume and revenue.

3. Maximize insurance reimbursement

EMR software allows producing sufficient supporting documents to comply with insurance criteria and supports the apt level of services to be billed. Correct coding paves way for speedy reimbursement process.

Still better, HIS/EMR helps in submitting fully completed claims in the very first attempt, majorly decreasing the number of denied claims.

4. Increase productivity

When EMR is not used physicians have to spend more time in creating and reviewing patient records. Whereas an EMR generates progress notes automatically that can be signed by the doctor on the spot or from anywhere, anytime.

Time is also saved when patient medical records are accessed by doctors and technicians without sifting through scores of paper-based records, when lab results are received digitally and when e-prescription is followed.

EMR reduces waiting time at every point of care. Time thus saved can be utilized by the physicians and technicians to attend to more patients each day, increasing productivity and efficiency.

5. Improve patient care

HIS/EMR features like integrated databases, suggestion of diagnoses based on symptoms recorded, and drug allergic interaction verification greatly aids in correct medications and dosages.

An HIS/EMR provides standardized clinical reports that can be shared digitally among specialists and technicians, which results in better care coordination.

Timely checks and reminders provided by the HIS/EMR can be sent to all patients who are due for recommended consultations or annual check-up. This results in increased volume and continuous care.

HIS/EMR allows physicians to share medical information to their patients digitally, increasing the chances of patients coming back for their future medical needs.

EMRs enable physicians to maintain better communication by delivering information directly to their patients electronically. Staying in touch drives patients to come back for future medical needs.

6. Decrease services cost/overhead

HIS/EMR software allows for medical charts to be created at the points of care, eliminating transcription costs. EMR reduces the costs and time related to storing and retrieving paper charts.

Patient Portal module in EMR facilitates patients enter their profile even before the first visit, hence eliminating man hour spent by the admin staff on the same and reducing data entry costs.

7. Predict actionable business outcomes

Smartly generated data using a good HIS/EMR allows for business intelligence process analytics that calls for analyzing data and predict actionable outcomes for management to take informed business decisions.

These decisions are mainly based on such data EMR produces by which augmented intelligence tools can utilize to ask questions, predict outcomes and visualize results.

CONCLUSION

EMR plays a powerful role in all spheres of a medical practice in the current high-tech scenario. Ophthalmology-specific features of an integrated HIS/EMR contribute around 60% for the success of the suite.

Given that selecting an appropriate integrated HIS/ophthalmology EMR software, with practice management, having high-priority features like integration with optical, pharmacy and lab as well as equipment integration is essential in achieving clinical and organizational goals.