Electronic Health Records For Dummies

Assessing who needs what training

If you are implementing both the clinical electronic health record as well as a new, integrated practice management system, then everyone in your office needs training on the new systems. Even if you’re only installing the EHR, most, if not all, of your staff will need some training and access to the EHR, even your front and back office staff. The trick is determining how much training is necessary for each role in your practice.

Consult the workflows that you updated with new procedures and responsibilities. Be sure to include in your training any staff members affected by the implementation. Chapter 8 includes a more detailed review of workflow analysis.

Follow these simple steps to create a chart to plan training for those who need it:

1. Obtain a list of all training options and classes from the vendor.

2. List all roles in your practice.

3. Work with the vendor to determine which classes are required and which ones are only suggested.

4. Communicate the training options to your staff along with expectations for their attendance.

Consider making a chart, similar to the one shown in Figure 11-1, so everyone knows what training is expected of them.

Figure 11-1: Determining training needs for your staff.