EHR Working Strategy
Patient portals have a number of different EHR working strategies. In some cases, the patient portal sends messages which must be manually interpreted and processed by the medical staff. In other cases, the patient portal generates targeted messages that are connected to the relevant EHR information and features. For example, some patient portals will send a message that a patient has requested a refill of a particular drug. The clinician has to locate the drug in the patient chart to issue the refill. Other patient portals will connect the refill to the patient medication record. When you look at the patient summary, you see the refill request message and the highlighted refill drug on the medications list.
Features
Patient portals may dramatically differ in the supported features and interactions. For example, some patient portals only support secure messaging to fulfill Stage 2 Meaningful Use. Other patient portals products support a complete exchange of specific information on patient care issues. For example, some patient portals can present condition specific forms for patients to fill out. The information on the form can be accepted into the patient chart by the doctor or nurse. The patient portal features may affect your implementation strategy and EHR use. For example, patient portals that are limited to messages would frequently be implemented after the EHR was in use for the majority of active patients. However, patient portals that accept information on family and social history as well as history of present illness will be an invaluable tool to help introduce a patient to the EHR.
An expanding list of patient service agendas requires a patient portal strategy and effective workflows between the patient portal and your EHR. Unfortunately, many practices have not carefully examined the patient portal strategy of their EHR vendor and the implications of the patient portal to their EHR strategy and use. EHR buyers should understand the specifics of the companion patient portal to their EHR options and consider the features and costs of such portals in their evaluation as well as their EHR implementation strategy.
This article was originally published on Avoid EHR Disasters and is used here with permission. Ron Sterling authored the HIMSS Book of the Year Award winning Keys to EMR/EHR Success. He is a nationally recognized EHR expert with the information that you need to improve patient service and performance. He can be contacted at rbsterling@sterling-solutions.com.