EMR System: What is it? Types, cost, Benefits and Examples

Have you been wondering, "What are EMR systems?"

EMR systems, i.e., Electronic Medical Records, are electronic forms of the medical record. You don't have to get hyped up to keep all your previous prescriptions, diagnostics reports, etc., safe. EMR keeps your complete medical track, including prescriptions, diagnostics, surgeries, allergies, etc.

People think EMR systems are just simple replacements for paperbacks. But it looks different from what it looks like. It is not only a mere storage system and tools to help the doctor you consult analyse your health status. When a doctor logs into the EMR system, he can view the entire medical history of his patient. This helps him to analyse and diagnose the patient better.

Besides helping doctors treat their patients, EMR systems have aided in reducing paperwork associated with medical care. It also provides a platform wherein different doctors can collaborate and share patient information, which is cost-effective and time-saving. Let's learn more about EMR systems.

Types of EMR Systems

EMR systems are categorised based on the purpose it serves. Based on the purpose, four types of EMR in healthcare are discussed below.

• Medical Billing EMRs- Medical Billing EMRs are the systems that hold the patient's billing record. It will help process the insurance quickly and take as minimal time as possible. In this way, insurance can be easily administered, and there would be transparency. It will also ease up the process of exchange of medicines because of the proper records.
• ONC Certified EMR System- If it is essential to have a proper medical recording system, then it is also important to maintain the patient's privacy. Some cases are highly sensitive. Thus their privacy should be maintained.

 In that case, ONC-certified EMRs are helpful as they are designed and regulated per the guidelines chalked by the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology(ONC).

• Cloud Storage EMRs- Cloud Storage EMRs are very helpful for patients travelling to a metropolitan city for treatment. So these Cloud storage EMRs will help the doctors review your reports beforehand and help you with further treatment.
  The benefit of Cloud Storage EMRs is that they can provide private access, i.e., only you and your consulting doctors can access your medical reports.
• Psychological Health EMR System- Since Psychological health is slightly different from physical health, the EMR system must also be other. So for Psychological health, the EMR system comes with additional features, such as note management.
  With access to Psychological Health EMRs, the consulting doctor could quickly look at your previous psychological health notes, which are designed in brief, unlike traditional article-like notes.
• Cost Breakdown of EMR System- When it comes to the cost of EMR software, it is costly. It is estimated that EMR systems cost between $16000 and $70000. EMR systems must be bought by paying the entire sum at a time.
  Then there are EMR systems that come with subscription packages so that EMR system cost is manageable for health facilities.

Benefits of EMR System for Patients

There are many EMR benefits for patients, and some best ones are enlisted:

• EMR system comes with the feature to graph a patient's blood pressure, pulse, sugar, etc. These charts will help the consulting doctor to analyse your health conditions.
• EMR systems leave no space for any error.
• With the help of the EMR system, one can easily track their recovery and the treatments one went through.
• The charts, graphs, and previous records help your consulting doctors to assess your conditions quickly and plan your proper treatment plan.
• If you still need to remember the upcoming appointments, EMR's notification feature will notify you. It will also inform you of any screening you must go through.
• With the availability of the data, doctors can take up your case from the point left or the case gone wrong.
• EMRs will help in the growth of medical infrastructure, which will eventually upgrade the treatment quality.
• EMRs protect patients' privacy by storing their data with utmost care and safety.
• Another benefit of EMR is that it will make the patients smart. They will be aware of the suggestions of the consulting doctor.

Benefits of EMR System for Healthcare Providers

• It can reduce the cost of paper, printing, and stationary, an everyday part of hospital life. In this way, hospitals can save a lot of money, which can be redirected to infrastructure development.
• It will also help health facilities enhance their everyday workload and process the enormous number of patients waiting their turn.
• The use of papers causes a lack of proof and miscommunication. These shortcomings can be easily handled by installing EMRs.
• Data availability will help the medical teams research the cases and develop better solutions.
• Health facilities will be easily connected to the pharmacies with the help of EMRs. This is an essential marketing feature.

Example of EMR System

A vast list of EMR systems, including over 250 EMRs, are in use nowadays. Let's take a look at a few of the examples given below.

• NextGen- NextGen was designed keeping outpatients in mind. It is designed to record all the details of the patient seeking consultation, including medical tests, diagnosis reports, observation methods, treatment methods, medication, etc.
  NextGen is embedded with various features, such as telehealth (Patients can consult the doctor over the phone), charts and analytics methods, medication recording, etc.
• TheraphyNotes- TheraphyNotes aims to manage the psychological patient's records. It is efficient and robust software made to reduce the workload of health facilities. It can also prove worth it if you are from the small-scale psychological facilities sector. It applies to all health facilities, i.e., large, medium, or small scale.
• AdvancedMD- AdvancedMD comes under the cloud storage type. The entire software is present on the cloud. It has benefits when it comes to storage and data protection. It also has user-friendly and advanced features to take notes on patients.
• CentralReach- Now, let's take a look at an example of billing EMR. CentralReach is a good example of a billing EMR that manages the schedule, billing, and insurance claims.

How is the Eka Care EMR System Helping?

Eka Care EMR is worth the use. It comes with all the features primarily required for a health facility. Another good thing about Eka Care EMR is that it is suitable for all three types of health facilities, i.e., small, medium, and large scale. Let's talk about some of the other features of Eka Care EMR.

• Communication between doctor and patient- Doctors and patients can fluently communicate on the EMR system of Eka Care. It has different sections to be filled by the doctor after the consultation. It includes symptoms, vitals, diagnosis, etc. The storage of this data will be useful for future reference.
  
• Transfer data from other EMRs- Even if you were using a different EMR system, Eka Care supports transferring data from other EMR platforms so that you don't have to endure the trauma of manually moving a pile of data.
  
• Data Safety- The data is fully secured and encrypted on the Eka Care platform. It has a strict policy to protect its client's data and a backup policy. The user will not have to worry about the data being leaked or stolen.
  Apart from the discussed features, it comes with all the other regular features, such as billing, appointments, medical record storage, charting, etc. So now is the time to switch to one of the most loved EMR systems.

Conclusion

EMR software is the future of the growing health infrastructure. Switching to the EMR will reduce paper use and prove a good marketing process. The user-friendly and efficient method of EMRs will reduce the workload on the health facility. Examples of EMR software discussed above will briefly explain the technologies available for health facilities. Lastly, we discussed the Eka Care EMR system, which is helpful in many ways. It has some advanced features along with many regular ones. Switching to the Eka Care EMR system is worth trying.

FAQs

What makes EMR different from computer storage systems?

Computer storages are just storage. But EMRs are an advanced form of storage that includes analytics tools and manages other features such as billings, appointments, etc.

How is EMR beneficial for a doctor?

A doctor can access the medical records present on the EMR dashboard. Using the reports where all the vitals, diagnoses, and medications are current and analytic tools are used, a doctor can quickly assess the patient's condition and treat them accordingly.

If we start a small-scale health facility, are EMRs affordable for me?

EMRs are expensive software, even for small-scale health facilities. So this is only a tiny problem, but if you are willing to spend that amount, there can be no issues.