Template
We recently spoke with a former hospital CEO who had some insights into EHR evaluation and selection. Phil Hanna has been in the hospital and health services industry for 45 years. For a large portion of that time, he served as CEO for a rural hospital. He now spends his days meeting with other hospital CEOs and consults them on how to balance administrative, board, clinical, IT, financial and other medical challenges.
Phil noted that, when looking at current EHR solutions, there are three things to keep in mind: 1.) What is driving the change in your business? 2.) What does the current hospital EHR landscape look like in your market? and 3.) What are the core elements that make an EHR a good choice for you? (by price, fit, and functionality).
Read on to learn how these three factors can help you navigate the EHR landscape.
What Drove EHR Adoption in the Past, Versus What is Driving that Need Today?
Take a deep breath, realize that now you have the opportunity to do things better for your organization as it relates to an EH
Seismic changes in the healthcare world have driven hospitals to evaluate EHR solutions. In 2009, EHRs were promoted by the Federal government under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act. This act served as the foundation for other healthcare IT related mandates all aimed at increasing adoption, driving to interoperability, and promoting data transparency. However, mandates encourage compliance, not good business and IT practices.
As a result, many hospitals missed the opportunity to use these solutions as a clinical and operational asset. Meanwhile, vendors were primarily concerned with meeting Federal guidelines and standards. This ultimately created a culture that feared change and penalties, rather than a culture focused on driving clinical value from IT and ensuring quality care.
We are entering a new phase in EHR evolution—one that puts clinical intelligence over compliance and leverages lessons from other industries on design, integration, and user autonomy. Emerging solutions are bringing together delivery strategies that use a SAAS approach, thereby eliminating hardware costs and drastically lowering maintenance and upgrade fees. They are predicated on user autonomy. End-users are empowered to make configuration changes to accommodate individual workflows and unique clinical requirements thereby mitigating coding costs and cumbersome change request processes.
Additionally, these solutions are designed around an open API structure to allow for streamlined integration and the incorporation of clinical applications that, when added into the EHR, create a true system of clinical intelligence.
The vendors are no longer caught up with compliance and we spent so much time back then about why we had to do this, but quite frankly we missed an opportunity to say ‘what is it that we need in our organization to function more effectively
What Is The EHR Landscape For Small To Mid-sized Hospitals?
The small to mid-sized hospital landscape is shaped by the careful balancing act of affordability versus functionality. The landscape is represented by a handful of vendors, most of which are older and built their systems around the need for compliance. Additionally, a few key players in the EHR rural market have abandoned this market, creating a void.
Old vendors are being displaced by new, competitive solutions that are offered at a more affordable and transparent price point, which include greater flexibility and scalability.
Some vendors claim to be able to handle every application of the EHR. These are the vendors who have the ‘one size fits all’ solution. However, it is rare, and perhaps unrealistic to think that any one solution can meet all the needs of an organization, and as a result many aspects of the ‘one size fits all’ do not address the functional needs of many end users. Inflated cost and expectations are tied to the ‘promise’ and ‘value’ of these monolithic technologies.
The idea that one solution can be everything to everyone has left many providers grappling with solutions that are “a Jack of all trades, and a master of none.”
The Complete Guide To Selecting An EHR Vendor
A Rural CEO’s Evaluation Process
My whole message, is that number one priority is to take
ownership of what you need
When considering all the EHR options, hospital CEOs must start with what the hospital really needs. What can the EHR software do for your hospital? How can this specific software cater toward your hospital? Will it solve the problems you are currently experiencing?
This is not about compliance; this is about solving problems and how vendors can support the process. Challenging vendors can help you better understand what your hospital needs and what they can provide. Therefore, an initial self-evaluation process is critical.
Specifically, examine fit, functionality, and price.
Fit
When thinking about ‘fit’ regarding EHR solutions, make sure to first sort out the practical issues, if you have not done so already. Are your servers already in-house? Or are you currently cloud based through a third party? What resources do you have to take care of servers? Should you be in the IT business?
My whole message, is that number one priority is to take
ownership of what you need
Questions to Ask Yourself:
- Do you have different care settings (clinics, post-acute care etc.) that need to be accommodated?
- What departments/specialties do you need to accommodate?
- Do you have the facilities to house servers?
22 Tips & Tricks to Increase Practice Reimbursements
Ask yourself: Are we consistently collecting patient co-pays? Are our patients paying on time? Are more than 4% of our claims being rejected? Do we have a monthly period close process? If you can’t answer “yes” to all of these questions, this list is for you!
Learn quick and easy ways to enhance your collection process and increase practice reimbursements
Functionality
Questions to Ask Yourself:
- What are the key department issues you are trying to solve?
- Are applications such as telehealth and patient portal included in the solution?
- Is the solution configurable to different workflows and care levels?
- What is the Information accessibility?
Price
Questions to Ask Yourself:
- What is the cost of installation?
- What kind of pricing model is offered – flat fee, transaction based?
- If transaction related, what risks are there to the hospital and how can these risks be mitigated?
- Are there maintenance fees or hardware upkeep?
