Electronic Medical Records System Benefits

Electronic Medical Records Systems manage patient information. As a result, the software is helpful to medical personnel regardless of the number of patients the institution caters to. Not only that, it’s been made increasingly clear that digitalizing the practice can only help medical professionals, not hinder it.

The benefits of using an Electronic Medical Records System

The system makes all medical records electronic

The doctor has access to the Electronic Medical Records and thus can retrieve information like medical history. The doctor is no longer required to visit the physical hospital or clinic, as all medical records are digitized. The EMR system is Cloud-based; thus, medical staff can access medical documents anywhere anytime, even if they don’t report to the clinic or hospital. Regardless of location, they can still conduct online consultations.

Since the system consolidates all records, it saves time. Doctors and medical staff see everything in a few clicks, including all patient’s records.

Medical apps lean more on consultation, like setting up a consultation or appointment and issuing prescriptions and medical notes.

An EMR System sums up and keeps track of records from the patient’s first visit to potentially the end of time.

Electronic Medical Records allow for ease of access

The Electronic Medical Records system makes everything accessible because the information needed to conduct consultations is browser- and internet-based. So, doctors and medical clinic assistants can easily retrieve patient records online. When a recurring patient wants to have a consultation, the doctor must first access the patient’s record.

In terms of emergencies, let’s say that a doctor is at home. However, at the doctor’s hospital, a patient suddenly gets admitted to the emergency room. Unfortunately, the ER’s attending doctor isn’t familiar with this patient, but the homebound doctor is. So the attending doctor calls the homebound doctor for information on the patient.

Because they use an Electronic Medical Records system, the first doctor can give the attending doctor all the information needed to safely and adequately treat the patient. For example, if the patient has hypertension, the EMR can inform what medicines the patients are taking. Not only that, it can show the latest information on the patient due to the record on the EMR system.

Even though the doctor is not even at the hospital, they can send the necessary files in the system to the attending doctor.

Cloud-based systems save time

Having an Electronic Medical Records system saves precious time. In addition, because everything is in the Cloud, you get to pull out records at any time, on any device (of course, provided you have internet access.)

Unlike a manual records system, the EMR system can automatically generate BMI and other exams that require calculations. Just input certain variables in the system, wait for the system to compute, and voilà! You have a report!

Medical documentation ready in a handful of clicks

Also, an EMR system can issue medical certificates upfront! Additionally, there’s no need to print anything, nor does the patient need to visit the clinic or hospital in person for their medical prescription.

With an EMR system, all medical documentation is available in soft copy. So, it’s easier for doctors to collaborate — they can show the softcopies while asking for a second opinion!

Most EMR systems have pre-suggested medications. If the doctor diagnoses an illness from consultation findings, the system will generate pre-suggested medications. For instance, for flu, the EMR will suggest prescribing paracetamol. For body pain, the system will suggest some pain reliever meds. As a result, the doctor can have an easier time finding what medications to include or exclude. Plus, the doctor can even add on the appropriate dosage easily!

Virtual consultations have never been easier

With an Electronic Medical Records system, one can do virtual consultations. But, of course, there has to be a chosen platform that allows communication between patients and doctors.

As for admissions forms, if a doctor advises a patient to admit themselves to the hospital via teleconsultation, the EMR system can generate an admission certificate. So, once the patient arrives at the hospital, they can be catered to immediately.

Nowadays, you have to go through triage and/or book an appointment before going into the hospital. Most people don’t feel so good sitting at the hospital for a handful of hours waiting for a doctor. But, if you have the admission certificate, there’s no need to manually scan patient information upon arrival.

Additionally, virtual conferencing, similar to Facebook Messenger, is also supported by EMR systems.

(Online) appointments are a cinch

More and more people are making appointments online. Now for a regular-sized clinic, they have about 15–20 patients per day. If they accept online appointments, the clinic’s patient count could double or even triple. Though not everyone will book online, the clinic staff can focus on patients who made their appointments.

Also, with an EMR system, it’s possible to receive payments online. So, the patient just needs to make the payment, then send payment confirmation through the agreed payment gateway, such as online banking.

Electronic Medical Records systems let you work remotely

Since it’s an electronic system, the doctor isn’t limited to one area. Without the system, the only people with access to medical records are those living in the area. The doctor can have access to the virtual clinic, and so do the patients if they have access to the internet.

With an EMR system, even though the doctor has a home-based operation, they still have complete control over the staff, such as the secretaries and nurses. All transactions across all users are transparent to the doctor.

Get reports on cases by location

With the Electronic Medical Records system, the practice covers a wide range — literally. In addition, the system provides analytics and site reports. So, for example, you can see a heatmap or a density of different cases by location!

So, if you’re on a virtual online consultation with a doctor, they can see the trend of consulting online because it’s open to all locations.

Most EMR systems have heatmaps to show the density of cases by location. For example, a doctor in a particular city can check the heatmap trend of a capital city or other state. The system will say whether a specific area is a code red or a code blue.

EMR Systems are incredibly beneficial to the healthcare industry

Electronic Medical Records Systems make medical staffs’ jobs more manageable and thus give doctors and nurses more time to focus on helping patients. First, the systems hold medical records for longer than paper. In addition, they can provide documentation and computations. They support virtual consultations, too! There are more incentives to utilize Electronic Medical Records Systems, but you should check out Electronic Medical Records for yourself!