Wishing all of our loyal clients and followers a Happy and Prosperous New Year we recoup from the holidays, take stock of what we learned last year, and know that 2012 will be incredible. This is “the year” that medical providers must attest that they are on a certified EMR. Given our great success in 2011 let me say that we are here for all of you; ready, willing and able to help you attain your goals. Our tag line “Proof is in the Performance” holds true - a large number of our clients have now received their $18,000 stimulus check. Through our “workflow fine-tuning”, and other tools, most of our clients have also dramatically increased patient volume and, consequently, greatly improved their net operating income – that is always our goal for our clients.

Several years ago, as HIT began interfacing with our medical providers it became clear that there was a large need in the industry for an EMR that not only provided clinical integration but also conformed to the privacy and billing items specific to mental health. After putting our researchers, analysts and advisers onto this mission, we are able to bring the best of the best in Mental Health Software to our clients – Pimsy! Pimsy is state of the art, affordable and easy to use, which, of course reduces our clients stress levels!

As I'm "on the line" everyday working with our provider clients in the face of healthcare reform, its uncertainty and the uncertainty of the economy, there is an outstanding item we can give..."peace of mind"! This is what we have when we deploy the Allscripts Brand. Over 190,000 users, $1.3 Billion in assets and a group of truly dedicated people who see the job through to completion and beyond - I see the relief in our clients. Allscripts MyWay is simple to use, affordable and extremely adoptable to the specific needs of each practice. Allscripts MyWay

Specialty configuration is critical. In our years of experience, we have noticed that each medical practice and/or clinic is different and practices medicine differently. Therefore, finding one EMR, out-of-the-box, that fits all practices does not exist! Generally speaking, each EMR has a base price that is competitive in the market and then the Specialty Configuration is added on top of that, making the true cost of a well functioning system much higher than the salesman promoted it to the practice. However, with the appropriate vendor management, your advisor can negotiate with an EMR Vendor to include the Specialty Configuration, usually at no cost.

Whereas there are many group discussions and blogs depicting reasons why EMR Implementations fail, we like to focus on success rather than failure. As they say, planning is everything – implementing an EMR is not like buying a car – once you have made your selection (with the help of your advisor), your work is just beginning. To successfully move forward to and through the implementation one needs to be as prepared as possible, as well as set the appropriate level of expectation. For these reasons we have developed am EMR readiness Assessment & Planning Tool which can be accessed at the Resources Tab at www.emr-hit.com

Considering the great influx of entries into the marketplace and the current pressure physicians are feeling to adopt an EMR I felt it an appropriate time to explain the state of the market. With 400 vendors now soliciting sales, the age-old sales tactics fall into play. The sales people are told, “It’s a numbers game, just get out there, schedule a demo, no matter what you have to say – we’ll close them!” Of course, this is done without a Site Analysis or EMR Implementation Strategy for optimum success, even when the vendor’s job is done. Every practice is unique, making it counterproductive to look at an “out of the box” solution. Then, there is the demo . . .they all look great during the demo. Demos are put on by professional demonstrators who can make everything look good – don’t be “Dazzled by the Demo”. What happens at 4:PM on Friday when you have a problem or your workflow gets bogged down because of the EMR or the training you did not get? The physician won’t be thrilled when his charting is taking an extra three hours a day.