Introduction
The case study reviewed in this assignment involves a multi-office practice that operates in small cities and rural locations. It tries to adopt an electronic medical record system to supplement its digital scheduling and billing processes. However, the system’s adoption is accompanied by difficulties, most of which stem from mismanagement. Data entry is not automated, leading many to ignore the system and increase the burden on nurses and techs. There is no comprehensive database at the system’s go-live time, leading to typos and other mistakes. Lastly, the medical and billing systems are not integrated, which leads to confusion among staff who think they are. Overall, the implementation is a failure, and the purpose of the assignment is to suggest ways to prevent this situation or resolve it.
Mistakes in Implementation
Most of the issues encountered in the process of system adoption were caused by insufficient staff knowledge. Employees should have undergone training in using the system, beginning with logging in and ending with data entry. The management should have explained that billing operates as it did before, as, according to Brown, Patrick, and Pasupathy (2013), some physicians thought that it would be automatic. It should also have highlighted the importance of using the program correctly, as, according to Meigs and Solomon (2016), physicians tend to believe EMR systems are useless. With these steps, the staff would have been able to handle the introduction better and avoid worsening the issues that were present through incompetence.
With that said, the staff would likely have been able to handle the transition somewhat well without any training if the system was ready for operation at the time of its launch. Zenith Internal Medicine should have enlisted some of its employees or external contractors to enter patient data into the system, even if the process was tedious due to the massive amounts of information. The creation of a medication database was also critical to the success of the program, as the system could order drugs directly (Brown et al., 2013). By following these steps, the organization would have incurred extra costs, but the process would become smoother and more relaxed.
Fixing the Situation
The decision to postpone the adoption of the EMR indefinitely was correct, as the system was not ready for use at the go-live time. It essentially reset the situation to the time before the system began seeing use, albeit at the cost of considerable damage to the company. As such, the company can now try the approach again after it adjusts the system and the competencies of the staff as described above. However, management should devote special attention to the staff, as their negative attitudes have likely been reinforced. Clinicians will likely have to be persuaded to adopt the system and require a period of successful use before they can trust it.
Conclusion
The failure of the system described in the case study can be attributed to the deficiencies of the system, which were exacerbated by staff competencies and attitudes. As such, the adoption would likely be successful if the EMR was ready for use at the go-live time. Staff training in its use and the clarification of critical questions would make the process happen with minimal issues. With the situation unfolding as described in the case study, the situation is reset to the state before the adoption. As such, its resolution involves the performance of data entry and staff training, as well. However, the prior failure makes it more challenging to convince the employees to use the EMR.
References
Brown, G. D., Patrick, T. B., & Pasupathy, K. S. (2013). Health informatics: A systems perspective. Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press.
Meigs, S. L., & Solomon, M. (2016). Electronic health record use a bitter pill for many physicians. Perspectives in Health Information Management, 13(Winter). Web.