Physicians Practice - February 2008 - (Page 35)

TECHNOLOGY MAKING EMRs WORK IN THE EXAM ROOM BY SHIRLEY GRACE DO YOUR PATIENTS LOVE YOUR EMR? HERE’S HOW TO MAKE SURE THE PHYSICIAN-PATIENTCOMPUTER RELATIONSHIP IS A HAPPY ONE. When EMR technology joins the patient-provider relationship, it becomes a three-way dance. So says Michigan State University academic internist Michael Zaroukian: “Unless the physician is facile with both the computer and the patient, it’s going to be an awkward dance.” An apt analogy. Think about it: Just as you want to avoid looking foolish on the dance ﬂoor, you IN SUMMARY Using an EMR in an exam room can facilitate patient visits and allow you to offer high-quality care. But make sure your patients feel comfortable with the technology by keeping the following in mind: • Practice using your EMR until • Position the EMR in the exam room so you can involve the patient during its use. you’re comfortable with it before going live with your patients. • Be sure you can always maintain a line of sight with your patient. • Strive to maintain a connection with your patient while you use the EMR, knowing that every time you look away from the patient you could miss something important. beneﬁt from you using an EMR during an exam, and you’ll likely gain quick approval. • Show a patient how he can personally • Tweak your EMR so it can print out patient-centric information, as well as a summary walkout sheet of the day’s visit. don’t want to fumble for the right key or drop-down list in front of your patients. Patients feel comforted by physicians who exhibit competence and grace with all the tools they use. That’s even more true for EMRs because they can be disconcerting to some patients, says Zaroukian, whose jobs include director of the university’s medical records system as well as its internal medicine clinic. Questions such as “Why is this intruder here? How do I identify it as an ally rather than a distraction?” may arise in patients’ minds, he says. “Their experience at home may be that they’re not being paid attention to by someone on the computer.” Successful use of an EMR in the exam room depends on how adept you are with your EMR, the way you arrange your exam rooms, how well you connect with your patients, and whether your patients believe that an EMR will directly beneﬁt them — and is not just some “cool toy” for you. Thankfully, solutions abound. Here’s how to make this three-way relationship an elegant pas de trois and not a toe-stomping tango. KNOW YOUR STUFF, DOC An early adopter of EMR, Community Care Family Medicine in Clifton Park, N.Y., implemented its chosen system, NextGen, in 1999. Eric Schnakenberg, one of the practice’s family physicians, remembers the patients’ reactions well: “They immediately connected to the fact that we were using a laptop,” he says. “Quality of care immediately went up in their eyes.” Sarah Corley, a physician who is chief medical ofﬁcer for NextGen, remembers a similar reaction. However, she says that it’s critical FEBRUARY 2008 | PHYSICIANS PRACTICE | WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM 35 http://WWW.PHYSICIANSPRACTICE.COM

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Physicians Practice - February 2008 Contents The Bigger Picture: Your Future is in Your Hands Letters Physicians Practice Pearls: Creating an A+ Practice Noteworthy Cover Story: Conquering Time: 5 Keys to a More Efficient Practice In Balance: A Family Affair Technology: Making EMRs Work in the Exam Room In Practice: "I've Got Some Bad News" The Tech Doctor - The EMR: Savior or Poseur? Ask the Experts NEW! Healthonomics: How to Handle Health Savings Accounts The Administrator's Desk: Finishing School for New Managers Human Resources: Is Your Partner Impaired The Great Practice Makeover: Too Well-Liked for His Own Good? Coding Idealab: 'Why I Blog' Classifieds Advertiser Index

Physicians Practice - February 2008

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