Digitizing Old Patient Records for EHR or EMR SystemsElectronic or digital records are all the rage these days. Everyone either wants to go digital or is being forced to go digital. One industry that stands out in the talk about digital records is the healthcare industry. Electronic health records (EHR) or electronic medical records (EMR) have been around for years, but they’re only recently being used – doctors and nurses are using computers during exams; patients are filling out forms on iPads; and prescriptions are delivered directly to the pharmacy.

The Numerous Benefits to Using EHR or EMR Systems

The benefits to using EHR or EMR are numerous. According to HealthIT.gov using electronic records gives healthcare providers,

  • Accurate and complete information about a patient’s health. This enables providers to give the best possible care, whether during a routine office visit or in a medical emergency, by providing the information they need to evaluate a patient’s current condition in the context of the patient’s health history and other treatments.
  • The ability to quickly provide care. In a crisis, EHRs provide instant access to information about a patient’s medical history, allergies, and medications. This can enable providers to make decisions sooner, instead of waiting for information from test results.
  • The ability to better coordinate the care they give. This is especially important if a patient has a serious or chronic medical condition, such as diabetes.
  • A way to share information with patients and their family caregivers. This means patients and their families can more fully take part in decisions about their health care.

But before you stop reading and jump head first into using an EHR or EMR system, there’s one additional thing to consider – old/existing patient health records.

Why Old Patient Records Need to Be Digitized

Having a complete patient history available is invaluable to treating your patients. And without digitizing your old or existing patient health records, you will lose out on many of the benefits of an EHR or EMR system. So what can you do?

The Wrong Strategy for Scanning Exiting Patient Records

One strategy many healthcare providers are using is to hire one or two people whose only job function is to manually scan the information into the EHR or EMR system. The downside is that it can take years before every patient’s records are scanned into the system. While you’re waiting for this to be complete, everyone is frustrated because who knows which patients records are digital and which ones aren’t. Efficiency and productivity suffer, which means patient satisfaction suffers. And the amount of money you spend hiring people might not make it worth it. There has to be a better option.

The Better Option for Your Patient Record Scanning Project

Outsourcing. You might have some negative thoughts about outsourcing this type of project, but with us here at Southwest Solutions Group it will be a much better solution than scanning the patient records yourself. If you’re still not convinced, here are some reasons letting us handle your scanning project is a better option for your healthcare facility:

  • Our services are completely HIPAA compliant.
  • We can quickly scan millions of medical records that will promptly be available for your staff to use.
  • We work on your schedule and within your specified budget so that you are in control.
  • With our services, you can free up space that was previously used to store paper records and put it to better use.
  • Because we know what we are doing and provide all the equipment, you don’t have to rely on untrained new hires or purchase expensive equipment.
  • We will provide storage for your paper records at our facility or come to your site at no extra cost to you.

Try Our Document Scanning Services for Free for Existing and Old Patient Records