Financial analysis projects clear returns from Electronic Medical Records: Demonstrating the economic benefits of an electronic medical record is possible with the input of staff who can identify the technology's benefits - Statistical Data Included

Healthcare Financial Management, Jan, 2002 by Karl F. Schmitt, David A. Wofford

* Enhanced ability to practice team medicine by making a patient's medical record available to several providers in different locations at the same time;

* Improved patient satisfaction; and

* Improved physician satisfaction.

These benefits sometimes can be difficult to evaluate in a cost-benefit analysis, but their strategic importance cannot be overestimated. Organizations that lag behind their competition in adopting EMR technology will have difficulty catching up and eventually will lose patients. An even more pressing concern is the issue of physician recruitment and retention. Increasingly, clinical information technology is becoming a major factor in attracting top-quality physicians who have trained on, and have come to expect, EMRs.

The benefits are not automatic. A cost-benefit study will benefit a healthcare organization only if it follows through with a focused effort to realize the projected benefits. Implementation of an EMR requires a strong, organizationwide commitment. An EMR is valuable only if users are willing to change the way they do business so that the technology works for them. Physicians who are used to having an administrative staff person transcribe medication orders, for example, may resist performing this function themselves at the workstation. Depending upon the organization's culture, overcoming this resistance may not be feasible.

Therefore, when beginning such an undertaking, it is helpful to assess the organization's receptiveness to EMR technology and to adjust (or even postpone) its approach accordingly. Questions such as the following should be considered:

* How technologically savvy are the physicians and administrators? To what extent have they already embraced other forms of information technology (eg, e-mail, the Internet, or personal digital assistants)?

* What is the organization's culture regarding decision making? Will a consensus need to be achieved before the EMR is accepted, or will the decision reside with a few individuals?

* Does the organization value group-oriented behavior, or is it more individualistic? Will it enforce the use of the EMR, or will it adopt a more laissez-faire approach?

* What will the organization most want to achieve by implementing the EMR? Some benefits will take priority over others, and this prioritization will drive the implementation schedule, work-flow revisions, and ultimately, the financial results.

* Has the organization received external pressure to automate its clinical processes? For example, has such external pressure become a recruiting issue? Is the competition proceeding along this path?

Conclusion

With many competing demands for scarce capital, financial managers are wise to scrutinize every business proposition that comes their way and reject any proposition that cannot meet the organization's financial objectives. Although building the business case for an EMR is not an insurmountable task, neither is it a small task. It requires a detailed understanding of the organization and the technology, as well as considerable hard work to bring all of the information together and translate it into measurable results.