Essentia EMR Jenifer Brilla CRNP Wilkes University
Electronic Medical Record The electronic medical record is used to store patient information, organize information and access information. The information stored must be secure, accessible to providers and concise. The EMR allows providers a way to document, organize and access necessary information.
Essentia EMR Essentia EMR is specific to behavioral health. In behavioral health, the EMR is used by medical staff, therapy, psychology, transcription, support staff and other clinical staff.
Essentia EMR Essentia EMR includes patient demographics, documentation management, imported document management, scheduling, DSM-IV diagnostic criteria and treatment planning.
Multidisciplinary Essentia EMR provides a holistic view of the patient. All documentation from multiple disciplines is accessible in one EMR. A concise, cohesive view of the patient can be obtained through this EMR.
Current EMR At present, our practice is using two EMR systems along with paper charts. Lotus notes is currently used for documentation purposes. Lavender and Wyatt is currently used for scheduling and patient demographics.
Current EMR cont. Paper charts are currently used for consents, imported documents, crisis, evaluation tools and medical history. The current system is not time efficient, cohesive or accurate.
The New EMR Essentia EMR will replace Lotus notes and the paper charts. Imported documents will be scanned into the system providing a more timely, concise medical record. Paper use will be greatly decreased, therefore, lowering the negative impact on the environment.
Prescription Writer Essentia EMR also includes a prescription writer. Providers will be able to issue a prescription from the computer system directly to the pharmacy. Prescription writer is a time saving feature which also increases accuracy.
Remote Departments Currently, our crisis department and Type 50 departments do not use electronic medical records. Essentia EMR has clinical documentation to support both departments. Communication will be improved among departments through the new EMR.
Remote Departments cont. Essentia EMR can be accessed remotely by providers from any location with internet connection, therefore, will be beneficial in on-call and crisis situations.
Risk Reduction Features including prescription writer and remote access reduce risk of error through complete timely documentation. Prescription writer will also reduce the possibility of tampering or altering prescriptions.
Telepsychiatry Essentia EMR is compatible with our telepsychiatry system. Telepsychiatry provides psychiatric assessment and management to patients ’ unable to access face to face care.
Multiple Disciplines Behavioral health consists of several different disciplines, therefore, a medical record must be able to support the needs of the various disciplines. Various needs include prescription, transcription, treatment planning, labs, diagnostics and crisis.
Cost Effectiveness Cost management and productivity must be considered when implementing a new EMR. Essentia EMR is cost effective as it will replace a second EMR and paper charts, therefore, reducing the staff needed to manage multiple systems.
Cost Effectiveness cont. Combining the two medical records and paper charts will also improve productivity, therefore, improve the financial status of the practice.
Quality of Care Quality of care is the most important consideration regarding an EMR. Essentia EMR will improve quality of care through improved communication, risk reduction and accuracy.
Ease of Use An important factor when implementing a new EMR is the ease of use. Essentia EMR is easy to understand and flows well. Ease of use will impact compliance either positively or negatively.
Training All staff will receive training on the new EMR prior to implementation. Training will be department specific. Educating staff is imperative to a positive outcome regarding a new EMR.
Productivity As a healthcare provider, productivity has become a necessity in order to meet the demands of the patients ’ and the financial obligations of the practice. This concept is often met with resistance, however, implementing an EMR that can assist in productivity will decrease resistance.
Changes in Healthcare Health care systems are constantly changing, therefore, providers ’ must explore and implement systems to improve productivity, communication, safety, quality and risk reduction. A concise EMR will reduce cost, improve safety and improve productivity.
Implementation Essentia EMR has been partially implemented into our practice and will be fully implemented in the near future. At this time, the system appears to be able to meet the needs of the practice, however, until the system is implemented a complete evaluation is impossible.