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Archives : software
Choosing the right practice management software for your practice
I wrote this article for the April 2008 issue Impact magazine, a professional journal that is read by owners of private practice physical therapy clinics throughout the U.S. The information is applicable to all types of healthcare practices with regard to choosing a practice management software package that is the right fit.
We all know that practice management software is here to stay. And while this is the case, there are still challenges associated with the use of management software in today’s physical therapy practices. It is not inexpensive to implement a comprehensive software or service, and practice owners can be left with a feeling of buyer’s remorse if expectations are not fully met.
Having a clear understanding of the benefits and exactly how they will affect your practice is of paramount importance when choosing practice management software or service that is right for you.
This article will focus on (1) the benefits of using practice management software, (2) a process that can help determine if a software or service is right for your practice, and (3) recommendations to consider in your personal pursuit of the right practice management solution for your facility.
Change Management Key to EMR Implementation
I have assisted with Electronic Medical Records (EMR) roll-out into a number of small to medium sized healthcare clinics. Careful planning and management of these projects is important for successful EMR implementation and seems to become even more critical as the number of employees in a practice rises. I came face-to-face with this recently as I assisted with the implementation of an IT infrastructure and a software package into a 7 physician practice with 33 employees. Planning, management, and communication at all levels of an organization is a lot simpler when you are dealing with a handful of employees – you can actually get them all in the same room for at least a short period of time. But, increasing this number to a clinic the size of 33 employees is quite another thing to plan for and manage. Communication has to be more formally planned out so that it reaches all levels of the practice. Furthermore, the skill sets and culture of the entire organization needs to be carefully analyzed (i.e. you can’t assume that everyone knows basic computer skills or that they even want to know).
Peter Polack, in his recent post on Medical Practice Trends, offers that applying the principle of “change management” will make EMR implementation much more successful. He includes ten principles that should be considered for anyone that will be managing the implementation of a new EMR system. These principles include such things as “addressing the human side”, “involving every layer”, “creating ownership” and “communicating the message”. Glancing through these principles one might think that they are simple common sense considerations. They are. However, omiting any or not creating a plan to effectively use these principles could be the difference between success and failure.
Many “failures” of EMR systems have as much to do with poor planning and implementation as with deficiencies in the software itself. This is especially true when it comes to the changes that occur on the human side. Planning how a new EMR system will integrate within a specific practice before actually installing the software will be time well spent and, ultimately, will benefit the bottom line.
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