At this point in the evolution of healthcare, most hospitals and health systems operate on an Electronic Health Record (EHR) to support their clinicians and enhance patient care – but have they chosen the right EHR for their organization and its unique needs?
Selecting an EHR system is a pivotal decision for organizations looking to ensure long-term financial sustainability and optimal patient care. But the right EHR is more than an IT solution. At the heart of a successful EHR adoption is a strong partnership, such as the one MEDITECH fosters with our customers. Close collaboration with an EHR vendor throughout the decision-making and implementation processes is crucial to ensure actualization of an organization’s goals.
“I think that’s something very interesting about MEDITECH is that it aligns with our community health system’s values, and when we were looking at different EHRs, that stuck out explicitly.”
Staying Independent on MaaS
At MEDITECH, we’ve gone to great lengths to ensure that our customers are deriving value from their EHR and are confident in a partner that supports their objectives. Choosing an EHR is an investment in ensuring the efficiency and effectiveness of care delivery – an investment that should yield significant returns in terms of both clinical and financial performance. The wrong EHR can lead organizations down an unstable financial path, with dramatically higher upfront and ongoing costs.
Improve the provider and patient experience
EHRs should reduce friction for both providers and patients. An intuitive, user-friendly design can alleviate burdensome or repetitive documentation, reducing physician burnout and increasing efficiency. An EHR that integrates seamlessly into clinicians' workflows allows healthcare providers to focus more on patient care instead of administrative tasks, ultimately improving care delivery as well as the patient experience.
“We have been able to reduce contract services costs by eliminating the prior dictation service. The quality of our providers’ documentation has improved and what once was a monthly cost of $10,000 is now as low as $7 a month.”
Reduce costs and enhance efficiency
An intelligent EHR utilizes predictive clinical surveillance tools to help healthcare professionals identify health issues early and minimize unnecessary readmissions and hospital-acquired conditions, reducing overall healthcare costs. Streamlined workflows and efficient documentation processes help eliminate inefficiencies – saving time and reducing the workload on healthcare staff.
Healthcare leaders armed with the right EHR can take a data-driven approach to identifying areas where resources can be better utilized. This optimizes resource allocation using real-time analytics to guide decision-making.
Unlock new revenue streams
An EHR system should do more than save on costs — it should unlock new revenue streams. Integrated revenue cycle management tools can streamline billing processes, reduce claim denials, and improve cash flow. By enhancing the accuracy of billing and coding, healthcare organizations can maximize reimbursements and minimize financial losses.
At the population level, EHRs can help organizations group patients by risk and condition, making it easier to offer targeted, proactive care and keep patients in lower-cost settings. With the right tools, health systems can improve their performance in value-based care models, unlocking potential revenue sources necessary in today’s competitive healthcare market.
“We’ve gone from our denial days being 9.4 in 2018 to 0.2 in 2024, which has increased employee and patient satisfaction.”
3 Vital Steps for Designing a Successful Revenue Cycle Roadmap
Improve patient care and satisfaction
Patient satisfaction is critical to healthcare success, and a user-friendly EHR plays a significant role in achieving it. Intuitive patient portals and apps can empower patients to take an active role in their healthcare, providing convenience and transparency throughout their care journey. Additionally, by offering convenient options like virtual care, online appointment scheduling, and secure messaging, healthcare organizations can foster loyalty and build long-term relationships with their patient population.
Ensure interoperability and integration for seamless data exchange
In today's interconnected healthcare landscape, interoperability is crucial for effective patient care. An EHR should make it easy to share data across disparate healthcare systems and stakeholders regardless of vendor, ensuring that providers have comprehensive access to patient information for better decision-making and reduced redundancy. EHR vendors must be committed to supporting advanced interoperability standards, such as FHIR and Direct Messaging that enable real-time data sharing and integration with external data sources.
Enable continuous improvement and innovation
An EHR should support ongoing improvement and innovation. With tools like advanced analytics and AI, healthcare organizations can access valuable insights into performance, spot trends, and make data-driven decisions that improve care and efficiency. AI features such as predictive analytics can help identify high-risk patients and suggest ways to prevent issues before they happen. A modern, open EHR ecosystem can drive innovation and set healthcare organizations up for long-term success.
Choosing the right EHR and the right partner can make or break an organization’s long-term financial performance and sustainability. By supporting quality, efficiency, revenue, patient satisfaction, and innovation, the right EHR can help healthcare leaders maintain their organization’s competitiveness in an ever-changing healthcare world.
For a more detailed view of how the right EHR can help ensure financial sustainability for your organization, download our free eBook.
