It can't be said enough, and we plead guilty to repeating it: EHRs alone will not fix your organization's problems. Instead, they may highlight flawed processes. When choosing a system, simplicity trumps comprehensiveness. These are among six tips for effective EHR implementation that HealthLeaders Media presented last week based on a survey of opinions from health IT professionals and other industry insiders.
"It is difficult to make sure you keep the necessary players in the loop," says Betty Lanzrath, director of health information management at Newton (KS) Medical Center. "As you prepare to move to an EHR, I think it is critical to create a leadership team that is made up of individuals who trust each other and who are ready to communicate the major steps along the way."
"Effective implementation requires ease of use," adds Claudia Tessier, president of the mHealth Initiative and former VP of the defunct Medical Records Institute. "All the bells and whistles won't mean much if the users find the system confusing, frustrating, limiting, and slow."
To read all the tips and recommendations:
- click on the HealthLeaders feature