Need a Reason to Invest in EHR? How about 6!

Yes, electronic health records (EHR) systems are an expensive investment. But do their returns amount to an offer you can't refuse?

Here are the top six ways EHR will pay for itself in cost savings and increased quality, according to your colleagues, (and they don't even mention government incentives.):

1. Payroll Savings
   
   
   • EHR isn't necessarily about reducing staff, it's also about freeing up existing staff to do more meaningful, practice-building work instead of filing and looking for charts or resubmitting paperwork multiple times...
     
     
2. Improved Quality Control
   
   
   • “EHR encourages and supports precise documentation and thinking throughout the case that improves the quality of care and reduces legal exposure” Dr. Castleberry says...
     
     
3. Real Estate Savings
   
   
   • Paper files need space, and as a practice grows, these files require more space...
     
     
4. Enhanced Disaster Prevention
   
   
   • When paper files are destroyed, they are gone for good...
     
     
5. Easy Referral and Consult Letters
   
   
   • In the past, a referral letter required setting time aside to write or dictate the letter, then tasking a staff person with typing and formatting it, sending it to the patient or doctor, confirming it was received and resending it if it wasn't....
     
     
6. Effective Marketing
   
   
   • By using patient demographic information along with medical information an EHR can create reports to help decide on certain marketing methods....

Read more of this article by Lee Ann Murphy, Contributing Editor of Optometric Managment

The Incentive is Real: $75M Distributed in First Round of Meaningful Use

CMS announced that more than 300 health care providers have received a total of $75 million in Medicare incentive payments for demonstrating meaningful use of electronic health records, HealthLeaders Media reports (Tocknell, HealthLeaders Media, 5/27).

CMS estimates more than 42,600 eligible physicians and hospitals have registered for the Medicare and Medicaid incentive programs, and roughly 485,000 could be eligible to participate, according to AHA News (AHA News, 5/26).

A list of health care providers who received Medicare meaningful use payments is available on a CMS website (Modern Healthcare, 5/27). The amounts of the specific payments were not revealed.

Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2011/5/27/medicare-distributes-75m-in-meaningful-use-incentive-payments.aspx#ixzz1Ot4dhFiN

COME VISIT US @ TOA/TEXMED May 13-14, 2011

Click on the image above to find out more.
See you in Houston!

ASCRS 2011: What a Great Meeting!

What a great meeting in San Diego, thanks to everyone who stopped by our booth and to all our friends @ASCRS. See you next year in Chicago!

But if you can't wait that long we still have a few more stops this year, next one is in Texas. Learn more.

See more pics from this years ASCRS Symposium and Congress in San Diego: http://on.fb.me/dXnJ7b

Are you eligible? Study: Many Physicians Eligible for Incentives but Lack EHR

"Many physicians are eligible for federal incentive payments for the meaningful use of electronic health records but lack a basic EHR system, according to a study published in the journal Health Affairs, Healthcare IT News reports.

Overall, researchers found that nearly 83% of office-based physicians are eligible for either the Medicare or Medicaid incentive program."

Read more: http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2011/3/8/study-many-physicians-eligible-for-incentives-but-lack-ehrs.aspx#ixzz1GaeIfQLu

IO CEO Highlighted in Newest Edition of "Ophthalmology Managament"

Our own CEO, Gregory Leopold, speaks about the importance of EMR/EHR certification and buying the system that's right for you in the newest edition of the "Ophthalmology Management" magazine.

-Mr. Leopold urges ophthalmologists to get involved with choosing an EHR for their practice. “You can have someone else screen for you, but at the end of the day, you should buy the EMR that feels right to you.” The most important predictor of a successful implementation, he contends, is physician commitment and comfort with their EHR choice.-

Read the full article titled "At the EHR Starting Line" by René Luthe, Senior Associate Editor of "Ophthalmology Management.

“If the system costs you time in the exam room, it will cost you much more than what you ‘saved’ when you bought it." - Gregory Leopold http://bit.ly/ieHEJC

Happy Holidays from IO Practiceware

Happy Holidays

Wishing you and your families a wonderful holiday season
and a prosperous New Year.

Sincerely,

The IO Practiceware Team

CCHIT Update: What is "Meaningful Use" and "How Useful is CCHIT certification"?

So, we've been getting a lot of questions regarding CCHIT and our role in helping our clients when it comes to qualifying for and receiving the incentive payments.

The answer is "Yes", we will be applying for certification on February 12th (the day the window opens) for certification under the ARRA rules issued on December 30, 2009. CCHIT has said that that is the first day they will be accepting applications. We do not know how fast they will process them. However, we expect to be certified in the next 6 months. Any previous certifications are no longer valid, as far as, the incentive plan is concerned. So, every vendor has to get this certification.
We will also help our clients in anyway we can. Although, it is not entirely clear how much help you'll need. Take a look at the articles below. They answer, in great detail, what meaningful use will mean for doctors and address the issue of CCHIT certification as a useful tool for choosing the right EMR.

Updates on Meaningful Use

Should CCHIT Influence Your EMR Selection

Hope you find these resources helpful!

- KH

January Newsletter: Buying the right EMR

In case you did not get the email version, here is the January newsletter in full. Hopefully, it will help you in avoiding some of the common pitfalls we've seen when people are choosing an EMR.

I'm the first one to admit I'm easily lured in by clever marketing and fancy labels when I'm shopping for food, shampoo, ... ok, everything! BUT, you have to know when to be more fastidious and read the labels. This is one of those times. Focus on whats most important and all the rest will fall into place.

- KH

BUYING THE RIGHT EMR

Several recent surveys (most notably by KLAS) have noted a drop in customer satisfaction with the EMR software purchased. While those surveys don’t offer opinions about why there is increasing dissatisfaction among EMR users, I have a theory. I believe that new buyers are not selecting the best system for their practices. Instead, they are being distracted from the most important criteria. Here are some points to consider when you are deciding what EMR to buy:

1. Buying an EMR is not like buying a car.
EMR software is still a work in progress. All the cars on the market today will get you where you’re going. All cars have pretty much the same set of controls. If you know how to drive a car, you can expect to be able to succeed in driving any car you buy. They do come with different features. They come in different colors. There are varying degrees of comfort and service, but no matter which one you choose, you will not find yourself with a car that you can’t drive or that will double your commuting time.

At some point in the future, perhaps the same may be true of EMRs. However, it’s not true now. Eventually, most EMRs will probably be well made. Today, the quality and focus of EMRs varies greatly. There is no standard for usability. There is no standard for applicability to your practice. There is no standard for even basic functionality.

2. CCHIT certification is not a standard for usability or applicability to your needs.
IO Practiceware supports CCHIT certification. Along with pretty much all of our competitors, we expect to achieve CCHIT 2011 ARRA certification in early 2010. We believe that CCHIT certification is a good first step in developing standards for EMRs – and it’s required for the $44,000 per doctor incentive payments that you’ll receive beginning next year.
However, CCHIT certification does not address usability. An EMR can get CCHIT certified and be absolutely useless in your practice. It can be much worse than useless – lengthening your exam room encounters and jeopardizing your reimbursements.
The most important criteria when purchasing an EMR should be usability. Examine each EMR thinking about whether you can use it in your exam rooms. My advice is to look at nothing else – at least not until you’re satisfied that you’ve found the best EMR for you – in the exam room. Everything else is secondary.

3. Don’t even think about an EMR that does not have successful implementations in practices like your own.
After you think you’ve found the EMR that offers you the best chance of being able to use it in your exam room, then make sure that the company that makes it has at least some successful implementations in practices like yours. The more the better. I don’t mean to stifle innovation. New companies and new products can sometimes be much better than the more established incumbents. But, my advice is to let someone else be the first practice to use a new system. In fact, you really don’t want to be customer 1-20. Resist all offers to be a “Beta Site”. The risk is almost always too great.

4. Buy an ophthalmology specific EMR.
With one possible exception (NextGen) you’ve got to be nuts to buy an EMR that does not specialize in ophthalmology. It’s tough enough for ophthalmology specific EMRs to satisfy your needs. With a non-ophthalmology specific product, you’re lowering your odds for success to unacceptable levels. Just don’t do it. No matter why you think this might be a good idea, “Just Say No”.

5. Other considerations …… Price, Practice size, Longevity.
It’s reasonable to consider these criteria – but by far the most important criteria are usability and a successful track record. If you still have a choice after considering those, then you might take a look at these other, way less important, criteria.
Since the cost of all the successful EMRs is pretty much the same, it’s hard to use this criterion. There may be occasional bargains to be had, but remember that the most important cost is your time in implementing your new EMR. Buying an inferior system because it’s a few thousand (or even a few tens of thousands) of dollars less is really the dumbest thing you can do. If your new EMR costs you a minute more for each exam, you’ll soon find that the bargain price was no bargain at all.
To consider matching your practice’s size to your vendor’s size is not as dumb as buying the wrong EMR because it’s cheaper. Smaller vendors may have difficulty meeting the needs of larger customers. Larger vendors might not “care” about their smaller customers. However, this should be your least important factor in the decision making process. Buy the EMR that works in your exam room. All successful EMR companies will grow much larger in the next few years.

To that point, worrying about your vendor going out of business is not completely illogical, but it is for the most part irrelevant if you’ve paid attention to the other criteria mentioned above. If you buy the best EMR you can find, that company will prosper and be one of the survivors.

In summary, just in case you’re still wondering what I think is the most important criteria for choosing an EMR for your practice …… Buy the EMR you believe works best in your exam rooms. Don’t get hung up on any other issues. All other issues are way less important in the end.

All of us at IO Practiceware wish you and yours a prosperous and happy New Year.

Regards,

Gregory Leopold
CEO IO Practiceware

CSEP 2010

For all of you Connecticut Ophthalmology doctors and staff:

IO Practiceware will be attending the January 8th 2010
Connecticut Society of Eye Physicians:
Annual Educational Program & Vendor Expo

We will have a booth set up for you to see the IO EMR up close and personal.
If you will be attending the show it would be a great opportunity to see how IO's touchscreen interface works and interact with it firsthand.

So stop by our booth and we'll be happy to give you a demo!

How do I post my comments?

Many of you have asked, so here is the direct link to CCHIT's public comments forum. In order to submit, you first have to register a username and password.

CCHIT public comments forum begins Monday

Remember that one time I decided to be really obnoxious and chastise the physician constituency for not speaking up about the ongoing EMR Certification process? Well, I stand by my obnoxiousness! Because now you actually have a forum to make yourself heard. Observe, the latest from the Certification Commission's newsletter:

"The first 30-day public comment period of the 2011 development cycle will open Nov. 16 – Dec. 15, 2009. Comment will be accepted for the first round of criteria for additional electronic health record (EHR) Comprehensive certifications not included in the Commission’s Oct. 7 launch of CCHIT Certified® Comprehensive and Preliminary ARRA certification programs.

These expanded areas include Clinical Research and Dermatology criteria (optional add-ons to the current Ambulatory EHR certification) and Behavioral Health EHR criteria - both standalone and as an optional add-on to the current Ambulatory EHR certification. Comment will only be taken through the Commission’s Web site."

Feel free also to share comments below, or email me with questions. Up next: stay tuned for a summary of the latest on certification guidelines.

--FR

Live Blogging from AAO 2009!

Or, We've Been So Busy We Haven't Had Time for Blogging!
Or, The Bottom Line Is: Everybody Loves EMR!

Dear Poor, Neglected, Though Ever-Constant, Blog Readers,

So much to say, so little time, as I write this now while sitting at booth 2964 at AAO 2009. That's right, live blogging! (Although, admittedly, because of limited internet access, I won't be able to publish this post until I go upstairs... But let's pretend it's totally live.)

Live blogging -- which is to say, the instantaneous transmission of information -- is perhaps emblematic of what we at IO Practiceware perceive to be a new era of doctors and their staff embracing technology! Which is to say: it looks like the ophthalmology community is finally (dare I say it?) embracing EMR!!!

Quite the revelation, I know. And, sure, maybe it's slightly premature. But I'm going to roll with it. It's like when you really, really, really like a boy and right after he kisses you you blurt out that you want to marry him and have his babies, only to find that it was way too premature, and way too effusive, and, uh, on second thought, he doesn't really feel the same way, and, uh, let's be friends.

But let's put aside my relationship issues. Let's instead talk more about this new climate of EMR warm and fuzzies. That's right: warm and fuzzies. We at IO Practiceware have been so pleased by the positive feedback we've been getting from the health care community, and especially those of you who have been following our product for a while, and especially especially those of you who have decided to take the plunge and implement our software.

Indeed, we have always suspected that the slow-turning gears of EMR acceptance would finally come full circle, but it's quite amazing to encounter affirmative feedback firsthand.

Why is this the case, you ask? Good question. We suspect that, most generally, EMR has become less scary. More specifically, with the newly-released CCHIT guidelines, the whole concept of certification has become more or less demystified (...much more on this topic in the next post...). What's more-- the practice landscape is now replete with success stories. EMR is no longer associated with failure, no longer the harbinger of doom. Instead, it is the gateway to the future! It is truth! It is beauty! It is freedom!

Bohemian maxims aside, AAO 2009 has been awesome. Thank you to all the folks (current customers included!) who have helped keep our spirits high. And, to those of you who want to join the party, be sure to check out our company website. Click here to contact us. We would be happy to set up a demonstration for you.

More to come soon!

It's good to be back.

--FR

Coming Attractions: AAO Joint Meeting, Oct 24-27

(A sneak peek of what's coming up after the New York Retina Congress)

American Academy of Ophthalmology, Oct. 24-27, 2009
San Francisco | The Moscone Convention Center
IO PRACTICEWARE EXHIBITING AT BOOTH 2964

Click here for a complete list of exhibitor "virtual booths." IO Practiceware's is listed under the letter "I" -- or you can scroll through to page number 10 (we are the first listing at the top).

CCHIT Town Call's anticipated gist: "HURRY UP."

Hate to say, "I told you so," but CCHIT's latest take on the long road to EMR adoption goes a little something like:

HURRY UP.

Their latest statement, released earlier today, urges health care providers not to wait until Spring of 2010 to begin adoption, because this will most likely prevent them from establishing meaningful use by the 2011 deadline. Press release excerpted below:

“We are concerned that providers could not achieve meaningful EHR use in 2011 if they wait until Spring 2010 – the expected date of HHS final approval of requirements – to begin adopting this technology,” said Mark Leavitt, M.D., Ph.D., Commission chair. “CCHIT has analyzed the recommendations of the Federal HIT Advisory Committees and is preparing to offer new paths to certification beginning this October. We invite vendors and developers to join us on a Town Call as we finalize the details of this process.”

CCHIT's Town Call, the latest in a series of group web conference whose intention is to incorporate the thoughts and concerns of doctors, practice administrators, as well as EMR vendors, will be hosted on September 3 at 1PM EST. Complete information on how to join the discussion listed below.


DATE: 9/3/2009
TIME: 1:00pm EST / 12:00pm CDT
WEB CONFERENCING: Information on how to link up online available here.

AUDIO: To use computer audio, you need speakers and microphone, or a headset.

To use telephone conferencing:
US/Canada Dial-in #: (866) 900-5706
Conference ID: 27236682

IO Practiceware to Exhibit at ASRS's Retina Congress 2009, New York City

Hello, dear, friendly, and inexusably neglected, Blog readers!

Let it be here writ that IO Practiceware, paragon of EMR vendor-ship and goodwill toward ophthalomology, will be exhibiting at the upcoming ASRS Retina Congress of New York.

Will you be in attendance? Here are all the details you need to know:

The American Society of Retina Specialists (ASRS) Presents
RETINA CONGRESS 2009
September 30 - October 4, 2009
Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers
IO PRACTICEWARE EXHIBITING AT BOOTH 230

Booth number 230, is, for your information, a corner booth! And corner booths are reserved only for the most illustrious and popular individuals. It's like how Jack Nicholson always sits in one of the front rows at the Academy Awards. (Here is a complete ASRS booth floorplan.)

If you are not already signed up to attend the meeting, registration has unfortunately been closed to newcomers. But there's always next year or, if you'll be in San Francisco in October, AAO 2009.

Smartphone Survey Results

From Softwareadvice.com:

Last week, Software Advice set out to answer the question: Which smartphone will own the healthcare market?

Doctors, nurses, students and many others in the healthcare industry responded to our survey.

You can find those results here.

Reductive Positivity Amidst the Mire of Uncertainty

Dearest Readers,

Sure, sure, sure, we're all like, "What's going to happen with EMR?" "What if I don't get my incentive payment?" "Why won't Craig call me back?"*

(*This concern may, in fact, apply only to me.)

Friends, I have the answer: We must accentuate the positive. Because my last post was a real downer. And because things could always be worse. You could, for example, be Amy Winehouse. And -- what's more -- there have been some truly encouraging developments in the past few months with respect to EMR certification:

1) CCHIT is working around the clock alongside ARRA to define meaningful use for EMR vendors. Sure, it's still half-baked, but we can nevertheless smell its cake battery goodness emanating from the kitchen into the living room as we watch cartoons with our baby brother and fight over the remote control. And, sooner or later, Mom's gonna call us in for dessert. And by "Mom" I mean CCHIT/ARRA, and by "dessert" I mean we'll know for sure what the heck "meaningful use" means. And then lots of $$$ for you and your practice via the stimulus package's incentive payment plan.

2) Who am I really to push you to make a decision before you're ready, but: when you think about it, there is actually no reason to fret about the impending certification criteria. As I wrote in this article, EMR vendor compliance is an absolute, unconditional, take-no-prisoners, definite MUST. As in, vendor survival will depend solely on this compliance. As in, no need to delay. As in, what are you waiting for? As in, I won't hold it against you if you continue to wait, but there are some extremely important reasons why you shouldn't, like this one, for example.

3) IO Practiceware continues to be awesome. If you're not part of an ophthalmology practice, I'm sorry IO can't offer you our ophthalmology-specific software -- but if you are, you can smile broadly and pat yourself on the back for choosing the field in which the best EMR vendor in the universe has chosen to specialize. And then you can buy our software. (Why are we the best EMR vendor in the universe? Here are a few reasons why.)

So there it is folks, as promised. Reductive positivity. Because, in the words of the atomic particle: "I was pretty bummed yesterday when I lost my electron -- but you know what? Now I'm more positive."

--FR

Not Enough EMR to Go Around?

Did you not have your dose of Cold Hard Truth this morning? Well, here's a pill or two:

There is an impending capacity overload for EMR vendors. IO Practiceware and, from what we've heard, our competitors have been working around the clock to accomodate the ever-growing surge of interest from practices planning to adopt EMR systems.

And while we will continue to provide the best possible service for every practice that's been queued up for a 2009 implementation, there's no freaking way we'll be able to support this level of interest if it grows at a more steeply exponential rate. Which means we'll have to cap off the volume of our customer base, and increase in the number of implementations per quarter at a much more steady, deliberate, and slow-moving pace. Which means some potential customers will, sadly, lose out.

The EMR industry as a whole -- and IO Practiceware in particular -- is having difficulty imagining how the EMR industry can satisfy the coming demands. Delivery times are lengthening, not only for IO, but for others in the industry. And the unfortunate reality for buyers is that practices that persist in twiddling their thumbs will ultimately lose out. Because, quite frankly, there won't be enough EMR to go around!

Think Christmas, Tickle-Me-Elmo, Ferbie. Same idea. Except, like, way, way more important.

If you're a prospective buyer, identify what's holding you back, and then demand that your questions be answered. IO Practiceware understands the Buyer's Dilemma with respect to CCHIT, but we've made our response pretty clear. (Article here.)

So: no pressure. Actually-- yeah, pressure.

Survey on Smartphones from SoftwareAdvice.com

Do you use a Smartphone? You might want to post your two cents via this survey from SoftwareAdvice.com that closes Tues. July 28 @ 5PM. From the accompanying article:

The smartphone industry is on fire. iPhone, Blackberry, Palm Pre and Google are all in the hunt for dominance. We want to know one thing: Which phone will become the device of choice for healthcare providers?