So you've finally decided it's time to make the switch to EHR software, but how do you decide which software is right for your practice? With so many options out on the market today it can definitely get overwhelming! There's so much to consider including your budget, hardware and software requirements, opinions from your staff, and the different features that each EHR system has to offer your practice.
We put together The Ultimate Buying Guide for Practice Management Software, free for download, that will help you evaluate your practice's needs, and weigh out the options of different software. But before you get started with that, we've got a list of 4 EHR software features to look for that will forever change your practice.
Does Your EHR Software have these 4 Key Features?
Clinical Decision Support
Clinical Decision Support (CDS) gives you and your staff knowledge and recommendations for patient-specific information to help enhance each patient's visit to your office. It uses a variety of tools and assessments to help enhance the decision making process during an exam. You could get a variety of things such as alerts and reminders, guidelines, order sets, reports, summaries, diagnostic support, and more to help you diagnose each patient. CDS is going to help increase the quality of care, reduce errors, improve efficiency, and boost patient satisfaction in your office.
Patient Recall
How much time does your staff spend on the phone each day calling in appointment reminders to patients? An EHR software that comes with patient recall is going to help reduce the amount of time your staff spends on the phone. Most patient recall tools allow you to keep your current patients active with appointment reminders, and help you bring back inactive patients with recalls. You'll be able to customize reminder and recall settings such as content, rules, and method of delivery including text and email reminders.
ePrescribing
With ePrescribing you'll no longer have to resort to paper-based prescribing. ePrescribing is a safer and more efficient way to manage patient medications. You'll be able to send error-free electronic prescriptions to thousands of pharmacies across the country. And, if the tool is built into your EHR software, the information you record in the EHR, like allergies, will be automatically populated into the ePrescribing tool. You'll also be able to access patient medication history, drug formulary support, and Physician Desk Reference!
Mobility
Last, but not least, think about the workflow in your practice. How important is mobility? Do you mind being restricted to accessing your system on desktops located in your office, or would you like the option of using a tablet to access your system? How often do you work from home? These are all things to consider when deciding between a client-server or cloud-based EHR system. Cloud-based solutions give you the freedom to access your system from any device with an Internet connection, either in your office or from home!
