The health care organization that I chose is Hanson and Associates, a mental health clinic. I currently work there as a Medical Billing and Coding Specialist. My immediate supervisor is the Patient Accounts Director, her name is Stephanie. She was one of the key managers during the implementation of the EHR at our facility about a year ago. I have spoke to her via email about her experiences throughout the implementation process.
The organization’s previous clinical systems and the motivation for the recent or current implementation
The purposes and functions that were to be fulfilled with the implementation of an EHR system are to have a safer and more cost effective care for the facility. The EHR system will guide the physicians in making care decisions that result in the best treatment for all patients. It will indirectly benefit the rest of the care team. This includes, but is not limited to the nursing staff, by producing legible, complete orders that have already been checked for any medication contraindications, dosing errors, duplicates, or potential conflicts with specific patient data. This will result in the billing department spending less time following up on incomplete, illegible, or conflicting orders, and more time on following up on claims and getting them paid.
The flow of data in the previous existing clinical system
Other patient safety benefits of an EHR system comes from the effect such systems have on the physician's decision making process about what therapies to order for patients. The flow of data before the EHR implementation were paper based charts that were unorganized and it was difficult to read physicians notes and orders. The new EHR provides access to current patient information, the best practices, disease-specific and evidence-based sets that help to optimize treatment planning and overall patient care. This makes it