When planning for an EHR Optimization, it is important to keep in mind that the installation of an electronic health record (EHR) is not a small task for any health system. For the implementation to be a success, extensive and proper preparation and planning, not to mention considerable fiscal and human resources are required. The implementation and adoption of the project are certainly moments of significant accomplishment for any organization.
There are a series of steps that an organization must follow if they wish to employ a successful electronic health record:
Post Go-Live EHR Optimization - Developing a Solid Foundation
The development of a solid Electronic Health Record employs a different concept from the one used during the implementation phase. Each change that is employed in the Go-Live environment demonstrates how the end users will interact with the system.
Organizations need to know:
- When optimization should start
- The roles of their teams during optimization
- How to focus and prioritize applications
- Roles of managers
Upon figuring out how they will handle the above tasks, organizations must:
- Know what to do with various types of build requests
- Define their scope
- Be aware of meaningful use and other regulatory requirements
- Be aware of enhancements beyond go-live
EHR Upgrades
EHRs will require upgrades over time to fix various errors as well as to integrate with the underlying infrastructure. Upgrades help to:
- Provide updated content
- Integrate regulatory requirements
- Fix bugs
Organizations must also know what the timeframes for upgrades will be, and how long they must prepare for them.
Effectively Using the Training Team
There are many functions that the training team will have to cover during optimization. They will be responsible for reinforcing tricky workflows, as well as communication updates. They must know the different phases of training that they will be responsible for, and how to recognize the factors that affect how they go about training, such as:
- Complexity
- Size of update
- Type of training necessary
Organizations must be prepared for the things listed above, as they are just a small snapshot of what can help result in a successful optimization. For a comprehensive manual on how to plan for success during an EHR optimization, download the full whitepaper.
