Benefits of an EMR for Physicians, Hospitals & Patients

Benefits of an EMR for Physicians, Hospitals & Patients

Electronic medical records or EMR refers to a system of organizing patient data digitally using specially designed software. Electronic medical records are essentially the digital equivalent of hard copy data files which record general information about the patient; like their medical history and their treatment at the clinic over the course of their visitations.

It accumulates data as it is collected over time by the medical practice and is referred to by the doctor at the time of visitation. It is a quick and efficient way to gather data and refer to it. There are several benefits of using EMR systems in your practice.

Benefits of EMR

EMR provides Benefits to three distinct fields:

  • Physicians
  • Hospitals
  • Patients

We’ll take a look at each aspect thoroughly and identify how you can utilize these benefits

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EMR Benefits for Physicians:

Electronic Medical Records provides physicians with the following benefits:
  • Improves Practice
  • Financial Benefits
  • Better Information

Improving Practice:

Electronic medical records are beneficial for patient care and the quality of work of family physicians. It must be noted that in the ever-changing landscape of medical knowledge family physicians need to keep up with a range of information. 

Family physicians can’t know everything. After all, they are human. This is where digital data systems come in. Electronic medical records as a tool are designed to improve access to information and relationships, effectively transforming how physicians conduct their practice.

Financial benefits:

Using Electronic medical records at your practice is an excellent way to bring down overall expenditure. According to many resources, including a study published by The American Journal of Medicine, opting for EMR systems can lead to a positive return on your financial investment. 

The use of EMRs has led to savings on drug expenditure, quicker and efficient recording and reporting of billing services, better service in radiologic diagnostics and lesser billing errors.

Better Information

EMR systems have special benefits for physicians. They collect, compile and provide information in a manner that isn’t possible with paper files. 

Information is presented in the form of graphs and pie charts. Data systems display values of cholesterol levels, and blood pressure and weight, allowing physicians to track any changes that have taken place over time. 

In addition, they allow them to better manage chronic diseases and screening targets; improving the quality of care provided to patients. Furthermore, they can also remind doctors when screening measures and prevention methods are out of date, prompting them to adopt new ones.

Related: Which EMR system is best for your practice?

Get a DEMO of SmartClinix EMR to See the Benefits LIVE

Benefits of EMR for Patients

The following are the two major benefits of EMR for patients:

  • Better Patient Care
  • Security & Privacy

Better Patient Care

In addition, using best emrs at the practice improves the quality of patient care alongside increasing safety. You can use the system to prescribe and place an order for your patient as well as being able to check whether the patient had been given the same medicine from another doctor. 

In addition, you can quickly go over the patient’s history at the touch of a button and get the low down on the patient’s medical history and allergies. The availability of such information allows the staff and the doctor to give well-rounded, personalized and efficient care to the patient.

EMR systems bring patients to the forefront of the healthcare process. Software features, such as clinical summaries, which are shared with the patients within three working days, give patients the low down of their visit such as the care provided, medicines prescribed, follow-up dates and other anecdotes. 

Summaries allow patients to retain information, recall something they might have missed and get a clearer understanding of what is going on. It also allows them to raise any questions they might have. Another feature of the software is providing links to videos, articles and images, which help patients in getting clarity about their personal healthcare situation.

These resources are patient-specific, making them easy to understand, allowing patients to make informed decisions about their impending surgeries, procedures and other areas of their life. 

Furthermore, patients can also request electronic copies of their healthcare information when they want to. If they ever want to switch healthcare providers, their electronic medical record is transferred to the new healthcare provider, giving them an in-depth look at their history.

Security & Privacy: 

Patient data is also much more secure in a digital system. Information is compiled in a database that can only be accessed by authorized employees. In addition, there is less likelihood of data being misplaced, as could be the case with a file system, whereby some pages go missing or, in some cases, an entire file is misplaced or misfiled. The flow of work thus remains continuous and smooth in the office.

Benefit of EMR for Hospitals

Save Up on Space

Paper charts and files need to be stored. They grow in size and require additional space as time goes on. You can free up space in the office for other facilities and do not need to dedicate a specific place to files.

Related: Electronic Medical Records implementation in hospitals

Dr Josh

Dr. Josh is a physician who's helping spread the knowledge about Telehealth and its advantages. At SmartClinix, he's providing his expertise and knowledge in the form of engaging articles on various health & tech related topics.

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