Guest Blog: EHR for LTC Providers
The following is a guest blog by Cynthia Morton, executive vice president of the National Association for the Support of Long-Term Care.:
Why has the long-term and post-acute care (LTPAC) market been slower than other providers to adopt and implement electronic health records (EHRs)? One reason is that, unlike most physicians and hospitals, long-term care providers do not qualify for the significant financial incentives offered through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) if they adopt certified EHRs that meet the meaningful use criteria of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Nonetheless, we in the LTPAC community have other, equally compelling incentives to adopt EHR systems that can improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of care and also meet the increasing demand to share patient care information with other providers.
Once we make the decision to convert our paper records into electronic ones, how can we be sure that our EHRs also will meet federal meaningful use criteria? One way is to consider an EHR that is certified by the independent, not-for-profit Certification Commission for Health Information Technology (CCHIT®), which has developed the first EHR certification program specifically for the LTPAC market.
The voluntary work group that developed the CCHIT Certified® program was co-chaired by the president of the National Association for the Support of Long-Term Care and included LTPAC providers and other clinicians, HIT developers and other industry stakeholders, and consumers.
CCHIT Certified products meet and exceed federal requirements and CCHIT's core LTPAC certification is applicable to all LTPAC providers. There also are optional add-ons for skilled nursing facilities and home health.
What are the benefits?
If we choose wisely, EHRs can offer LTPAC providers a number of important benefits, including:
- Easier access to patient diagnostic, treatment and demographic information
- Automated alerts that allow staff to respond quickly to changes in a patient's condition
- Time savings in documenting care, obtaining patient records, processing physician orders and reading care givers' notes
- Greater ease in tracking quality indicators
- Improved documentation that may support higher research utilization groups (RUGs) and increase reimbursement.
- More rapid information exchange that can improve diagnosis and treatment, enhance coordination of care and streamline transactions with payers
What to look for in an EHR.
The basic qualities to assess when choosing an EHR are:
- Functionality - what the product "does," such as the ability to create and manage electronic records for all your patients, as well as automate the workflow in your facility.
- Interoperability - how the product exchanges information with other products, such as the IT systems of physicians and hospitals.
- Security - the product's ability to protect your patients' privacy and provide secure and easy access for authorized providers.
Preparing for the future.
Interoperability between your EHR and those of other providers is particularly important as we prepare for the new health care system that is rapidly becoming a reality in the U.S. - one where care is integrated, coordinated and seamless. We must have the tools needed to share information with physicians, hospitals and other LTPAC providers and to participate in partnerships with hospitals, accountable care organizations and health information exchanges.
While there are many EHRs on the market from which to choose, it's important that we choose wisely. The systems we invest in should be tested and certified against industry and government standards and support the needs of our patients, both now and in the future.
Whatever products we choose, it can take up to a year to research and fully implement an EHR system. The time to get started is now.