Sickness Cannot Wait
Too little time and ink has been spent evaluating some of the ‘soft-costs’ of uprooting established workflows and behavior in an age where practices and hospitals are undertaking substantial investments in EHR technology. As with any major overhaul, there are unintended consequences derived from change, and EHR implementation is no different.
Even the best implementation of an EHR system will cause disruption to a medical practice. In an effort to properly prepare for the clinical overhaul and effectively train physicians, EHR vendors require providers to reduce their patient load during part of the implementation and training period. The length and extent of the patient reduction is based on the speed of implementation and the efficiency in which the providers master the new technology. Unfortunately, the reduced patient load can last anywhere from three weeks to three months, significantly reducing practice revenue during this stretch. Some scenarios permit shorter reductions, while some induce even longer periods of abbreviated patient scheduling. The question that is rarely asked is, “What happens to the patients during this time?”
If you were trying to schedule an appointment with your doctor, and the practice was unable to accommodate your needs, what would you do? I suspect you would be compelled to make arrangements to see a provider that can accommodate your needs. After your visit with the new provider, what are the odds that you will go back to your original provider once their EHR has been implemented? How would the practice or physician even reach out to you to let you know that you are wanted back?
Patient visits are declining due to the obvious economic turmoil and financial hardship. It is difficult to comprehend why a practice would limit their patient volumes, even temporarily in this climate. Though EHR technology is touted as being a panacea to all of the ills in the healthcare industry, the results have been mixed at best. In many cases, the loss of productivity over a 90-180 day period will ruin the prospects of an ROI from the implementation. Limited patient access to physicians is a costly decision that can impact the bottom line of a practice for long periods of time. Is a long and slow migration to EHR technology something your practice can afford?
EHR vendors must realize that an EHR implementation affects a practice on many levels. Surely, physicians expect there to be a period where they will have to see fewer patients, but the important question they have to ask is, will those patients affected by an EHR implementation consider leaving altogether?
