Allscript introduction of MyWay For Small-Practice Physicians, HIT Benefits Now Are Within Reach - February 26, 2010
Orlando Florida -- Historically, adopting health information technology (HIT) has been a challenge for physician practices with 10 or fewer doctors. Cost and complexity have been formidable barriers to small group practices that already operate on thin margins. What many physicians fear most when considering HIT implementation is the potential of disrupting the operations of the practice and, ultimately, the impact on patient care.
Fortunately, recent trends and innovation from HIT vendors have begun to reduce the costs of billing and electronic health record (EHR) systems, putting them within reach of smaller practices. The ubiquity of the Internet means these tools can be implemented, updated and accessed more simply and easily. And today, there are significant financial incentives to encourage physicians to adopt HIT, whatever their practice size.
Technology and ARRA spur fresh look at EHRs
Primary care practices – even those with five or fewer doctors – have several new reasons to reconsider their past EHR decisions. Payers are raising the bar with pay-for-performance and other measures that require doctors to track or demonstrate compliance with clinical guidelines, which cannot easily be done with paper records.
In addition, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) allocates $19 billion for health care information technology to help physicians modernize their practices.1 This includes Medicare incentive payments of up to $44,000 over five years to eligible physicians who meet “meaningful use” criteria for integrating EHRs into their practices.
If physicians fail to adopt and demonstrate meaningful use of EHRs, they will be subject to reductions in Medicare reimbursements at the end of the five-year period. Even though the funds being offered under ARRA are not enough to pay for legacy solutions, they are more than adequate for the implementation of a Web-based EHR system.
In the past, few small-practice physicians have had much interest in legacy vendor solutions because of the cost – typically an upfront investment of products like Ingenix and eCW of $60,000 to $100,000 – and significant annual maintenance and upgrade fees. Legacy solutions also require physicians to install and maintain network servers, an expensive and challenging situation.
Compounding the issue of cost, many physicians who implemented legacy solutions actually saw decreases in productivity and income. However, the availability of low-cost, Web-based EHRs now makes implementation less daunting and less expensive.
To take advantage of federal ARRA funds, physicians should reexamine the EHR systems available now in order to demonstrate meaningful use by the end of 2010 and be eligible for incentive payments in 2011.
Problem recognition is first step in EHR strategy
One of the first things physicians should consider is whether HIT tools will make their practices more efficient and result in better patient care. Many practices believe their paper systems are already effective, which can be a tough mental barrier to overcome. For example, a practice may have built a systematic way of moving through a work day by handling information like ‘stat’ lab results via paper ‘sticky notes’. That process could be improved measurably by applying technology to speed workflows. Practices can be so entrenched in their current processes that they fail to recognize the opportunity provided by ARRA funding. Products like Allscripts-Misys Myway are being adopted almost 3 to 1 over they closest competitions in a recent survey by the HIT Group of Boston Mass. One of the reason for MyWay's sucess is it's easy to use, feature rich software and fewer hours of training, says Brian McCarthy CEO of Sencilo HealthIT Solutions, LLC in Orlando Florida.
A lack of familiarity with ARRA provisions may also be a missing piece of the EHR puzzle. A recent survey of physicians and practice administrators showed that more than half of the respondents have “little or no” familiarity with the ARRA and only 42 percent of respondents have “some” familiarity with its provisions. This finding is significant because federal funding under the act goes a long way toward relieving the burdensome cost that 82 percent of respondents cited as their top concern regarding EHR adoption.
In the face of increasing costs and decreasing reimbursement, primary care physicians cannot afford to pass on funding or to suffer from reduced reimbursement amounts in five years because they did not adopt an EHR system.
Modernization of the nation’s health care system depends on physicians taking action now with regard to EHRs. Although small physician practices provide nearly 75 percent of all ambulatory care in the United States, just 13 percent of small and solo practices have implemented an EHR system, compared with 57 percent of physicians in practices with more than 50 doctors.
These statistics underscore the need to offer extra assistance to small-practice physicians. To determine precisely what physicians are up against, Sencilo is developing a blueprint for what a successful EHR transition looks and feels like. By creating a replicable guide to help small physician practices navigate through otherwise complex processes for selecting, installing and adapting new technologies, Sencilo intends to illustrate the best-case scenario for HIT implementation. Through case studies and both qualitative and quantitative data, Sencilo aims to show how physicians can use EHRs, evidence-based medicine and e-prescribing to provide better patient care and satisfaction, and better access to critical healthcare information.
Sencilo has partnered with select small physician practices for a pilot program, providing them with licenses to Sencilo EHR, a CCHIT-certified,Local server or Web-based EHR application that allows physicians to access patient records and review medications, patient history, recent orders and test results with speed, agility and efficiency.
In addition, Sencilo has introduced a package that includes interest-free financing, health information technology (HIT) services and performance guarantees to help physicians integrate HIT into their practices. The program enables qualifying physicians to implement Sencilo Allscripts' MyWay EHR, a low-cost, full-functioning electronic health record (EHR), with no out-of-pocket costs and no payments until 2011 when American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) reimbursements for EHRs begin. Sencilo guarantees that Allscripts' MyWayEHR will support “meaningful use” requirements physicians must meet to be eligible for the maximum Medicare reimbursements allowed under the ARRA.
Primary care doctors, especially those in small practices, want to be successful, remain independent and deliver excellent patient care. Sencilo has a vision for the future and we are actively investing in ways to transform health care in a positive way for physicians and their patients.
For more information please call (407) 641-5199 or visit us at: http://www.sencilo.com and let us "Uncomplexify your Information
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