If, as a physician, you’re done with your Electronic Medical Records (EMR) Software, and looking to finally switch to a newer one, you are not alone. Problems related to the usability of the software, the difficulty in implementation, or the changing regulatory requirements occur quite often and they make practices switch their EMR/EHR or Practice Management (PM) Software.
A majority of healthcare practices will change their EMR Software atleast once at some point in their operation. If you too are one of them, here are some tips for choosing a scalable software for lasting change to avoid a cycle of new software systems in your healthcare clinic.
Step: 1 – Make a List of Requirements
This might seem like a trivial thing to do although it can be the most effective step in deciding if the next Electronic Health Records (EHR) Software is going to work for you or not. You can list down what you expect from the next software and what you didn’t like about the last software. You can then discuss this list of requirements with your EMR vendor and make sure that you’re getting the right software.
Step: 2 – Reflect on Possible Options
Once you’re done sorting out what you require from the next software, you will probably shortlist a few options. Before deciding on a single option, compare these options against each other and find out which option suits you the best. For this purpose, you can also look up EMR Software Comparison online to compare these options side by side.
Step: 3 – Keep Yourself Open to Ideas
Deciding on one software yourself, without consulting your staff and other relevant members in the practice is never a good idea. You need to involve every single person who is going to use the EMR System into the discussion and take their views as well. Implementations are generally more successful when staff members are on board with the decision and feel positive about the incoming software.
Step: 4 – Develop an Actionable Strategy
A well-thought and actionable implementation plan can significantly enhance the whole process of switching software. Such a plan not only includes the implementation process itself but also incorporates pre and post-implementation activities. Having strong software support always helps in the first few days after the implementation.
