As Auxano Solutions offers a full array of technical support, the topic of Electronic Medical Records is by far the most popular inquiry of our clients. Like any good doctor, Auxano Solutions has a specialty, which is our ability to provide a service that allows the transition from “paper” to “paperless” to be as smooth and painless as possible.

Traditional paper medical records have many drawbacks: they can be incomplete, torn, worn, misplaced, or lost. They also require a lot of storage space in addition to requiring extensive administrative time from your staff. Many physicians maintain this system, because the alternative would be to adopt an electronic format, which many physicians are either uncomfortable or unfamiliar with. However, there are many advantages to utilizing an electronic medical record (EMR) for your practice including:


* Increased access/efficiency: On average, 30% of patient charts are not available during a patient visit, according to a Gartner Group research study. With EMRs, patient information is immediately accessible, which can save every doctor using an EMR around an hour per week that would have been spent waiting for charts to be delivered. That's 52 hours a year waiting for charts instead of seeing patients!

* Security: EMRs can be configured to restrict access to only portions of the medical record or have multiple levels for office personnel that are restricted based on job function. Many EMRs have audit trails that identify anyone who has accessed or added to the record. Be sure the EMR you choose has this feature!

* Improved Documentation: Test and lab results, EKGs and X-rays can all be entered automatically into an EMR, reducing the risk of data entry errors and missing the information altogether. Health maintenance prompts alert physicians and office staff to missing or required patient information that has not been completed. EMRs also remove the problem of illegibility of patient notes since the information will be stored electronically.

* Quality of Care: EMRs can provide decision support at the point of care, which has been shown to reduce adverse antibiotic reactions by 85%. EMRs can also be used to track patient follow-up activity, patient compliance, and patient progress.

* Increased Resources: Once an office successfully converts to an EMR, the space typically used for paper records can be utilized for additional exam rooms, patient education areas or increased office space. Office staff time will no longer be utilized hunting down records and filing: multi-user access will allow staff to update patient records immediately.

* Reduced malpractice costs: Insurance companies have been known to reduce malpractice premiums as much as 10% because of EMR use. In addition, in cases where a malpractice suit is filed, you are better defended with an EMR which automatically documents patient progress and visits with a clearly legible audit trail.