Adoption & Implementation News

3 Healthcare Orgs Prioritize Patient Experience in EHR Implementations

Three healthcare organizations, including an FQHC in Missouri, a health system in New Jersey, and a clinic in Maryland, recently invested in EHR implementations to advance patient experience goals.

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By Sarai Rodriguez

- With the healthcare industry’s growing emphasis on improving the patient experience to achieve better health outcomes, healthcare organizations are investing in EHR systems that support patient communication, improve data access, and streamline clinical workflows.

Missouri FQHC Looks to eClinicalWorks EHR to Drive Patient Experience

ACCESS Family Care, a federally qualified health center (FQHC) in southwest Missouri, has transitioned to eClinicalWorks EHR to improve the patient experience for its underserved patient population. With a range of features and functionalities, the EHR system aims to facilitate affordable and interoperable care.

“We were looking for a solution to promote interoperability and streamline functionality to empower our patients and further our commitment to providing exceptional care,” Tracy Godfrey, medical director of ACCESS Family Care, said in a press release. “eClinicalWorks features — such as real-time communication, portal access, on-demand and same-day scheduling — make all the difference. Now, our providers will spend less time charting and maneuvering through inefficient workflows and more time on what is most important: our patients.”

One of the key features that ACCESS Family Care will leverage is PRISMA, a healthcare information search engine. PRISMA intends to facilitate data-driven decision-making by gathering relevant clinical data into a searchable view to identify care gaps.

The EHR implementation will also give the FQHC access to healow Open Access, an online appointment booking solution. This EHR functionality offers patients access to view open appointments to reduce no-shows, improve patient experience, and enhance provider satisfaction.

READ MORE: NextGen EHR Implementation Brings Integrated Care to Missouri FQHC

Additionally, through the behavioral health module, providers can monitor goals, evaluate care plans, and oversee appointments. Furthermore, this solution aids in managing patient mental health by recording their behavioral health background, encompassing lifestyle habits, daily activities, and support from home and community environments, eClinicalWorks wrote.

Finally, within the HEDIS Analytics tool, providers will be able to gauge care gaps, engage patients, and evaluate treatment compliance.

Valley Health System Cites Patient Experience for MEDITECH EHR Implementation

Valley Health System in Ridgewood, New Jersey, has decided to go live with a MEDITECH EHR implementation to enhance both clinician and patient experience.

The MEDITECH tool allows patients to access a large interactive footwall monitor displaying personal medical records, care team members, and diagnostics. Additionally, patients can control lighting, window shades, and room temperature using the EHR monitors.

Eric Carey, VP of Information Systems and CIO at Valley Health System, stated that these are just some of many features the EHR offers to improve the patient experience.

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“Displaying the patient’s record on these monitors gives providers the dexterity to review results and discuss them while still with their patients,” said Carey. “The value of these tools to improve patient/provider connections cannot be overstated.”

Additionally, the healthcare organization will have its real-time location system integrated with MEDITECH to track patient location when they are not in their room. Smart beds and AI-powered video surveillance systems will detect fall risk behavior based on patient movements, enhancing staff response times, MEDITECH stated.

“Furthermore, by tracking the location of nurses and physicians in relation to patients, we look forward to our clinicians partnering with our Analytics team to understand better how the number of patient-to-provider interactions impact patient outcomes,” continued Carey.

Overall, the partnership between MEDITECH and Valley Health Systems aims to keep the EHR as the primary source of patient data, eliminate duplicate data, and advance patient care.

Maryland Clinic Announces eClinicalWorks EHR Implementation

Mercy Care and Clinic LLC have launched an eClinicalWorks EHR Implementation as the organization works to drive patient acquisition, maintain patient data access, and lower healthcare costs.

READ MORE: Community Clinics Look to EHR Implementation to Up Patient Experience

“It’s important that we make a good first impression and start our practice off on the right foot,” Chi Chi Otuya, founder and provider at Mercy Care and Clinic LLC, said in a public statement. “The eClinicalWorks Cloud EHR will give us a strong IT footing, especially with all the moving parts that come with starting a new business.”

Just opening up in February 2023, Mercy Care and Clinic intends to establish a positive reputation in Maryland by offering value-based care to patients and said eClinicalWorks can help the clinic achieve these goals.

Utilizing eClinicalWorks, the clinic said it can manage various aspects of its operations centrally, including revenue cycle management, population health management, telehealth, and patient communication.

The EHR will also provide an array of tools to assist Mercy Care and Clinic in concentrating more on enhancing patient care while minimizing the time spent on organizing their administrative and operational tasks.