Chapter 19
Ten Questions to Ask (And Answer)
In This Chapter
Determining practice needs
Creating a must-have list of features and services
Engaging patients in their care
You probably have a lot of questions about your impending EHR adoption and implementation. That’s perfectly natural and, truth be told, keep questioning and finding out more information. We encourage you to ask (and in many cases, answer) these top ten questions. You’ll certainly come up with more must-answer tidbits on your own, but here are some of the biggies you need to have at the top of your list.
Why Are You Doing This, and What Does This Practice Need?
Before you rush into your own implementation, you have to know why you’re embarking on such a laborious effort. Although other practices and organizations have a variety of reasons, you need to understand which ones matter to you. What questions are you trying to answer, and what problems are you trying to remedy? Are you trying to improve patient outcomes, save money, comply with federal mandates, and receive stimulus funding or some other reason? You can look at other offices and try to duplicate their efforts and adopt their rationale for implementing EHR. In the end, you have to determine what your specific reasons and drivers are for starting this journey.
How Much Will EHR Adoption and Implementation Cost?
You need two things for EHR adoption and implementation: money and people. Yes, you have to spend real, physical money to purchase EHR software ...
