EHR Selection

Selecting an electronic health record (EHR) system is one of the most daunting decisions a practice can make. You have no doubt heard horror stories from your colleagues about how difficult and seemingly insurmountable it can be. The information overload that needs to be processed - from the sheer number of vendors, meaningful use compliance matters, software certifications, stimulus funds, and so forth, can make this an overwhelming task.

But despite the challenges, the process for selecting an EHR system that matches your needs is relatively straightforward and not that onerous. But it will require a commitment and work at all levels of the organization.

Some points to consider

As with any project, having senior executive sponsorship and support is one of the key ingredients for success. Lack of such support is the number one reason why projects fail
Second to senior management, it is essential to have stakeholder buy-in at all levels of the organization. The actual users of the EHR system must be part of the selection and implementation team
You need to set realistic expectations within the organization for the changes that will occur
Moving from a paper health record (PHR) system to an EHR cannot be accomplished by short cuts
Prepare for change in your business processes and policies as it will change for the better with a successful implementation of an EHR implementation
Compliance issues with state and federal regulations will be much easier and can be automated to a large degree which will save you time and expense in the long run
The quality of data will be raised and it will be available nearly instantly. This will result in the EHR enabling substantial improvements in clinical practice, patient safety, and better healthcare outcomes
Resistance to change is natural, but with careful planning, timely and well paced training, it can be managed effectively
If managed correctly, both the clinical and economic justifications will result in the realization of a positive Return On Investment (ROI)

In our experience in any selection, be it for an EHR system, server, hardware, practice management application or other application, there are some key considerations which we address:

Planning

Organizational Sponsorship
Key People & Project Management
Finance & Budget
Technology Considerations
Integrated Practice Management Systems with EHR or EHR only considerations
Schedule considerations
Warranty & Training requirements
Go-live support requirements

Survey Vendor Landscape

Narrow down the field
Vendor short list
Scoring Criteria

Proposal

Request for Proposal development and release
Proposal Response Management
Product Demonstrations
Selection committee / Scoring support
Pricing
Best and Final Offer
Final Selection

Contracts

Contract development/review
Contract negotiation support
Contract award

We just don't talk about Health IT, we get Health IT done.^SM