Ironcomet
Iron Comet is the largest company of its type in the state of Georgia. We are an IT firm that specializes in the needs of medical practices. We are the single source for you practice's IT related needs as well as some other services. Our company can support your computer hardware, network cabling, and everything in between. We have also forged partnerships with a medical billing company and a several practice management consultants. We are a One McKesson certified Platiunum reseller but we can support many practice management EMR, and related products.
MY BLOGS
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Why Electronic Medical Records Are Needed
http://ironcomet.com/blog/
My brother is a pulmonary specialist. My father was a pediatrician. Although I have some training in medicine, my primary expertise is medical technology. I’m also a patient and while recently changing doctors I needed my records transferred to my primary care physician. Thankfully my new doctor had an EMR in place and was able to take my records, scan them into the system and instantly have access to my prescriptions and past medical history.
Like any other record keeping, moving patients’ records from paper to computers creates great efficiencies for not only the patient but a for providers and health payment systems as well. For me, access to good care becomes easier and safer when records can be easily shared. Information like blood type, medication, and past history can be accounted for quickly and easily. Let’s not forget that this access can be lifesaving if an emergency occurs and the information is needed during the emergency decision-making process.
In disasters like Hurricane Katrina or 911, the benefits of electronic systems are evident because doctors treating the victims could access their records from a regional storage facility and treat the patient with more certainty than before. Veterans’ hospitals share an electronic system called VistA, which allows for sharing of records for veterans in its health system. Although not perfected, it is certainly a good start.
Safety is one of the key tenets of EMRs. Sometimes when I fill out a form at a doctor’s office I forget to write down some of my prescriptions and medical history. I think that is common around the world. This piece of the puzzle can now be solved with the provider’s access to your past history if electronic records are available. The physicians I work with are happy to find the information they need about patients. They realize that depending on the compulsiveness, diligence, and commitment of individual practitioners that some of the information is not up to their standards. Some notes are useful and trustworthy while others might be lacking in uniformity and details. These are problems that will be ironed out over time but we have to start somewhere.
When people change physicians so frequently because of new health plans or relocation, patient records could easily be misplaced or lost. Keeping these records electronically and giving access to the patient, is a wonderful benefit that has come about in the last several years. And money is saved, not just on paper and file folders, but the cost of labor and space as well. Time equals money in a physician practice and the efficiencies created by simply typing a few identifying keystrokes to retrieve a patients record is worth the effort.
We all know that this transformation will be painful for a while but limiting mistakes and improving the issues of privacy and security will take precedence over the pain.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 89 )
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Medical Practice Marketing 101
Put an ad in the yellow pages and call it a day. That’s how my father used to advertise his pediatric practice. Alarmingly, some doctors today still do the... Read more
Posted on 31 August 2012 -
672 Pages of Stage 2 Meaningful Use
The final rule for Stage 2 Meaningful Use is a whopping 672 pages. The biggest surprise was the lowering of thresholds for achieving certain measures like... Read more
Posted on 29 August 2012 -
Time for Stage 2 Meaningful Use
The preliminary rules for Stage 2 Meaningful Use were released exactly 6 months ago and like clockwork the “final rules” are now set. Read more
Posted on 28 August 2012 -
Kicking and Screaming at Your EMR
Last week I spoke with a doctor who runs a large pulmonary practice. Our conversation centered on EMR technology. He was frustrated because he did not like the... Read more
Posted on 27 August 2012 -
Medical Practice Survival in Social Media
I talk to doctors daily and ask them what their biggest concern is about the survival of their independent practices. Most reveal that administrative costs,... Read more
Posted on 22 August 2012 -
Challenges of EMR Adoption
Over the last few years we have worked with doctors from different specialties and backgrounds. So it’s not surprising that each one of them have their own... Read more
Posted on 20 August 2012 -
Zen and the Art of EMR
I’m not advocating that to achieve success in Electronic Medical Records (EMR) you meditate and obtain spiritual enlightenment. Read more
Posted on 16 August 2012 -
EMR Consulting Services
As fall approaches, our staff at Iron Comet is ready to assist medical practices in all phases of their business. We offer complete access to our expert... Read more
Posted on 14 August 2012 -
How to Contend with Resistance to Change
In previous posts we have discussed the “transformation” to a digital system and how it affects the staff in a medical office. Resistance to change is normal... Read more
Posted on 13 August 2012 -
Medical Practice Tax Considerations for Electronic Medical Records
When I first started in business I worked for a large accounting firm. Although I left that industry many years ago, I still keep an eye on accounting principle... Read more
Posted on 10 August 2012 -
Technology in London 2012 Olympic Games Keeping More Track Just Scores
This is a post from the Health IT blog from the Department of Health and Human Services. It certainly looks like it is a promotion for Electronic Health... Read more
Posted on 07 August 2012 -
Technology Is Keeping Track of More Than Just Scores at the London 2012 Olympic...
This is a post from the Health IT blog from the Department of Health and Human Services. It certainly looks like it is a promotion for Electronic Health... Read more
Posted on 07 August 2012 -
The Evolution of Physician Marketing
It is no longer a prerequisite to advertise your medical practice in the Yellow Pages. Not only is it expensive, but the return on your investment is difficult... Read more
Posted on 07 August 2012 -
Marking Health Maintenance Items Complete With Lab Results
Here are some tips to help SUMMARY Health Maintenance items will be marked complete when the corresponding lab result is loaded through the interface. Read more
Posted on 06 August 2012 -
Computer Maintence Tips for Electronic Medical Records
Maintaining your computers after a EMR (Electronic Medical Record) implementation is important to help your system run smoothly in years to come. Computer... Read more
Posted on 06 August 2012 -
How to Properly Respond to Electronic Refill Requests – Medisoft Clinical EMR
Summary Pharmacies can send refill requests electronically to providers enrolled with Surescripts who are using Practice Partner\LytecMD\Medisoft Clinical. Read more
Posted on 03 August 2012 -
Help Your Patients Create a Personal Health Record (PHR)
How can your Electronic Medical Record (EMR) help promote prevention? By helping your patients create their individual Personal Health Record (PHR), you can... Read more
Posted on 02 August 2012 -
HIPAA Requirements – Surviving the Blitz
I’ve worked in many healthcare facilities and must admit to seeing and overhearing some blatant violations of HIPAA requirements. Some breaches were simple... Read more
Posted on 01 August 2012 -
Evaluating Quality of Care
How does a physician evaluate their quality of care? The simple answer consists of one easy answer. If they are using paper charts they don’t know what quality... Read more
Posted on 31 July 2012 -
Why Electronic Medical Records Are Needed
My brother is a pulmonary specialist. My father was a pediatrician. Although I have some training in medicine, my primary expertise is medical technology. Read more
Posted on 30 July 2012