Vital benefits of Electronic Health Records and health IT

Health information technology can improve care by ensuring that care is based on evidence, 

Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, proposed new rules that would expand the privileges of patients to access their health information by using health IT.

Specifically, the new rules would help patients by allowing them to get access to test results directly from labs. These rules would ensure that the labs covered by the Health Insurance Portability and AccountabilityAct of 1996 (HIPAA) provide such information, after request, directly to patients or their personal representatives.

The announcement emerged Monday at the kick-off of the first HHS Consumer Health IT Summit, which brought collectively consumers, providers and the public and private industries to talk about how best to empower consumers to be partners in their health and care through health information technology.

"When considering healthcare, information is power, " Sebelius said at the summit. "When patients have their research laboratory results, they are more likely to ask the right questions, make smarter decisions and receive better care. "

In conjunction with the announcement, the American Nurses Association issued a press release in which it pledged to teach consumers about the great things about digital health information.

The ANA plans to develop educational materials on health information technology for RNs to share with consumers. The effort will help people be familiar with great things about using their electronic health records to prevent illness and manage chronic conditions, and also to track their history of immunizations, clinical exams and hospitalizations.

" Health information technology can improve care by ensuring that care is based on evidence, " ANA President Karen Daley, RN, PhD, MPH, FAAN, said in a news release. "It also allows healthcare experts from different clinical settings and disciplines to communicate effectively about a patient's treatment to avoid duplication of services and ensure nothing important is missed through a lost paper trail or failed memory. This excellent platform for compiling and examining data also supports one of the strongest tenets of nursing -- teaching the healthcare consumer. "

The ANA will ask nurses to submit types of the progressive use of health information technology in their practices, including methods for engaging patients in the use of that technology to improve their health, such as through patient websites. The ANA intends to share such models with the Office of the National Coordinator for Well being Information Technology (ONC), a branch of HHS, to demonstrate nursing's effectiveness in developing consumer-oriented health information technology strategies.

On a legal basis, the Notice of Proposed Rule-making, jointly drafted by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the HHS Workplace for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Centers for Disease Control and Reduction, proposes to amend the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Changes of 1988 regulations and HIPAA privacy regulations to strengthen patients' rights to access their own laboratory test result reports.

The Summit highlighted essential advantages of electronichealth records and health IT:

- Health IT empowers patients. For example , people at risk of myocardial infarction may use mobile health applications to control their weight, diet and medication adherence.

- Health IT can facilitate lasting quality improvements, which can lead to greater efficiency and cost savings in the long run.

- Health IT is the traveling innovation in all regions of consumers' lives -- from new interactive applications to devices such as digital pedometers that capture important health information from every day experiences.

- Health IT helps coordinate better care, and can be an excellent tool for patients in handling serious medical conditions.

- Health IT has robust security and all users, from patients to caregivers to providers, can simply and securely access and share health information electronically.

- Health IT may help diagnose health conditions sooner, avoid medical mistakes and provide safer care that can lead to lower costs.

In the coming yr, ONC will work with health-related stakeholders to help consumer access to information and encourage consumers to become dynamic participants in their health. The new website www.HealthIT.gov creates dedicated consumer-oriented information that describes the benefits associated with health IT Business Supervision Articles, provides consumer health education materials and will be a valuable source of learning about new progresses in health IT.

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Exploring The EHR Benefits Beyond The Hospitals

EHR System : The big thing in the healthcare industry

A recent study has shown that EHR meaningful use translates to better healthcare quality in conditions of screening and testing several illnesses and diseases such as breasts cancer, chlamydia, and diabetes. It has yet again been proven that, better patient care and safety is one of the leading EHR benefits that may be achieved through better patient information handling using an EMR system.

In addition, with the establishment and setup of EHR meaningful use stage 2, the relationship between the smart use of EHR and patient protection has been more evident than ever. The EHR meaningful use stage 2 requirements are focused on bringing the EHR system beyond the walls of hospitals or any other place of practice. Secured patient access to EHR data and free sharing of information among practitioners, also called interoperability, are the key milestones that should be achieved. Yet just how do patient access and interoperability directly, which is related to improved patient security?

Patient Entry to Data and Improved Treatment

Patient access to EHR and patient safety are directly associated with each other. As per the CMS requirements, an EHR system should contain patient history, health problems, clinical notes, lab results, and medications for EHR meaningful use to be performed. When these sorts info are open to the patient themselves via a patient portal, they may be given the chance to raise questions and concerns, thereby increasing health-related. They are also given access to direct revisions such as changes in their prescription.

Also part of the EHR meaningful use is correcting records in only a few clicks, as opposed to correcting erroneous records in writing. So whenever patients see lapses in their information, they may easily correct them. This, together with immediate reply to queries, is the key EHR benefits that can be obtained out of this setup.

Interoperability and Quality Healthcare

Aside from patient access, an EHR system should also be able to handle interoperability in accordance to the EHR meaningful use standards. To get example, if a patient is seeing two doctors, both physicians should be able to encode patient records and monitor the patient's status (e. g. prescriptions being taken) as per each other's advice. How do EHR and patient safety relate with the other person in this manner?

By being able to monitor other physician's advice, a healthcare practitioner will be able to determine the consistency or inconsistency of a patient's health status, the treatment this individual or she is receiving, and other related information. For example, if this shows in a patient's records that he or the lady is getting a prescription of anti-depressants from two different physicians, it could mean that he or she is committing drug abuse. With an interoperable EHR system, this risk can be avoided.

Likewise when interoperability is at this level, the EHR benefits the whole nation's health care quality. How so? 1 concrete example is early outbreak prevention. When physicians are able to screen symptoms across a huge number of patients, proper actions may be put into place sooner.

Uncrossed but Cross-able Boundary

Even though the benefits associated with EHR system is actually promising, the fact of the subject is that only 13 percent of all health care practitioners who committed to EHR meaningful use are able to comply with the stage 2 criteria. Many practitioners are yet to understand how and why an EHR system can help them improve their services. What they do not realize is that the answer to their problem is simple: ASK.

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Medical Billing Service - How Does Software Aid Electronic Filing of Claims and Improve Collections?

Medical Billing systems need to effectively manage payments from your patients, while alerting you to accounts that need special attention.

Medical billing software solutions are being adopted by an increasing number of doctors each year as it the actual billing process easy, fast and accurate. Health care providers should examine not the particular services of the medical billing service provider but also the quality and features of the medical billing software each uses to ensure it is well suited for their practice.

Advanced technology and the internet have brought Medical coding and billing software within easy reach of both small and big healthcare providers. An believed 75% of claims are being submitted electronically today.

Medical billing providers are using industry standard software that offers clients the benefits of cost, customization, efficiency, accountability and financial coverage. Healthcare providers should look at not only the services of the Medical code and billing provider but also the quality and features of the medical billing software each uses to ensure it is well suited for their practice. Right here are a few suggestions on what to look for in the payment software solution.

Features of a Medical coding and billing software

All payment software must have the basic features to publish says and manage billing in an electronic format. However, this is merely the tip of the banquise. Efficient software provides overall flexibility, speed, transparency of information, security, point-of-sale bill keeping track of, comprehensive reporting, scheduling of patient visits, scanning, printing photos, credit card processing, email capabilities, and much more.

Standard features of medical billing software include:

-              electronic filing of claims

-              editing of previous claims and re-submission

-              one platform for charges, adjustments and obligations

-              sending patient statements

-              reporting financial statistics for making decisions

-              customizable screens for accounting

-              user friendly program

-              web-based or wireless gain access to to the device

-              data security

-              one platform for private staff and billing service personnel

-              transparent transaction control

-              visible charge balance

-              full transaction control

-              HIPAA conformity

These features ensure medical providers gain access to complete information, the billing service is well organized and appropriate, and the complete medical practice works more efficiently.

Medical coding and billing providers ensure their client's personnel is trained in the software and also care for maintaining it. They are also in charge of upgrading it when required, and regularly backing up data for data security.

Advantages of using Medical coding and billing software

It makes the medical coding and billing process less complicated and accurate. The manual process of filing claims is fraught with inaccuracies that cause insurance carriers to reject claims.

Some of the major benefits of medical billing software are:

-              Standard electronic forms and rules ensure accuracy of varieties, which reduces the chances                of the claim being rejected.

-              Cash flow boosts as the time to payment reduces.

-              The software is built on industry standards and ensures HIPAA compliance.

-              Time and work is saved because of easy follow-up of promises through reports and                              checking features.

-              Better decision making due to considerable revealing of financial statistics.

-              Data transparency allows medical providers to oversee the electric submission of claims.

-              Billing providers and medical providers can access the same data and interact to improve                    collection rates.

A billing provider must use a good quality software solution to provide the maximum benefit to its clients. The electronic process of filing claims and taking care of data through software increases the efficiency and earnings of medical providers.

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Does Your Electronic Medical Record System Have These Three Characteristics?

Keep This Simple | Keep Hardware Cheap And Replaceable | Get CCHIT Qualified Systems Only

Large HMOs and hospital organizations have experienced the benefits associated with electronic medical record system software almost from its first creation. These companies were the earliest of early adopters, with EMR a part of their company structure as considerably back in the 80s and early 90s. Managing these assets and patient records has recently been a boon to bigger organizations, with most EMR systems paying for themselves many times over.

The single doctor and small practice, meanwhile, was nowhere to be found when it came to electronic medical record system adoption. Early phase of EMR software was skipped by a lot of small practitioners, and this would not differ until 2004. Suddenly, Windows Personal computers and cheap hardware made EMR systems far more interesting to the only physician, and early adopters commenced appearing.

The North American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 improved so much for the electronic medical record system users. All of a sudden, Medicare and Medicaid bonuses made it possible for doctors to adopt new EMR systems and have it paid for by the government! The industry immediately found itself getting a lot of popularity jumpers anxious to gain access to free government funds. The result is more choice, but also less quality controls and more substandard vendors. Finding the best system is a difficult puzzle for many doctors. Three key details in deciding what EMR system to go with include:

1. Keep This Simple - Adopting and using a whole new system that will completely change your office's workflow is not easy. So should not the EMR system itself be easy to use? Avoiding products with gawky or difficult interfaces is the best way to save adoption, training and support costs for each and every medical professional. Stated simply, the less complicated the application is to use on an everyday most basic, the more efficient it is, the easier it is to train personnel, and the less times a call to back up must be made. Keep it simple from the get-go, and you will save yourself a lot of pain.

2. Keep Hardware Cheap And Replaceable - Is someone offering you an electric medical record system that runs on UNIX? Close your ears and run away from them! The truth is, Windows PCs not only make most EMR interfaces recognizable (and thus, much easier to learn), but also make the systems cheaper. Why buy a $20, 000 system when a $400 one will give you the same benefits? Avoid any developer that suggests "specialized hardware". He is most probably a scammer.

3. Get CCHIT Qualified Systems Only - The recent incentives have quite simply meant that every designer with a dog and a 'go get' the business is now an "experienced EMR developer". Yell "free government cash" in any crowd and see how quick people come running. A similar result has taken place in the EMR industry. Eventually, the original industry players formed an association that gives quality control where there wasn't any (particularly for these phony vendors) before. It's called CCHIT. And when your EMR is CCHIT-certified, you can make certain that not only would it qualify for government incentives, but that it has what it should be called an "elite product". No CCHIT-certification often means trouble, for the short and long term.


The three points above are a great location to start when looking to install or change your EMR software. There are many other considerations, of course Science Articles, but these are critical to making sure your electronic medical record system is the best you can get.

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