Electronic medical records system is basically a computerized system in which all medical patient records are automatically electronically processed. This enables the physician and the patient to have quick access to reliable and accurate information pertaining to the health of the patient.
Complete and accurate medical data about the patient is also removed the risk of wrong medication. This system is used in many hospitals, clinics and other health care organizations.
Patient Electronic Medical Records
Medical doctors and dentists can access electronic medical records system to acquire medical information of their patients from anywhere, anytime they want. The information obtained by doctors can be downloaded to the computers for further reference.
Medical doctors can gain access to patients’ medical history of up to six months. In addition to this doctors can also view the electronic medical records of their patients under various surveillance conditions. This helps doctors in assessing the medical condition of their patients accurately.
Importance of Medical History of a Patient
Electronic medical records system not only helps in saving time, money and trees but also enhances the efficiency and quality of the service provided by the medical institutions. With electronic medical records system, a paper medical records is replaced with an electronic medical records system, thus eliminating the chances of errors in inputting or interpreting the data.
Since all the medical information is electronically stored, it is easily retrieveable by the physicians, nurses, therapists, hospital management staff and other personnel involved in providing healthcare services. With the help of electronic medical records system, a patient’s entire medical history is available at the touch of a finger.
Portable Electronic Medical Record
Electronic medical record systems are generally portable and compact. They can be easily carried to any part of the world and can be stored on any device, which can access the Internet. In addition to this, most electronic medical records system can be transmitted and downloaded onto any other electronic device, including PDA’s, laptop, mobile phones, handheld computers etc.
Thus, anytime and anywhere a patient requires medical advice or information, he/she can gain access to them, by simply logging on to the electronic health record website. This is very advantageous for the physicians, as they do not have to personally visit each health institution or office to provide medical advice or information.
Advantages of Electronic Medical Records
The advantages of electronic medical records are not restricted to the medical professionals alone. The patients too, have benefited a lot from the electronic medical records system. As they are no longer required to make extra rounds to their doctors, can schedule their appointments according to their convenience and can check the status of their health on the Internet.
One of the major advantages of electronic medical records system is that they eliminate the chances of medical practitioners making any errors while giving medicine to their patients. EMRs can track and monitor patient’s health from one visit to the physician to the last.
EMRs of their Patients
Moreover, healthcare providers and administrators can access the EMRs of their patients, without the need to visit them physically. This means that if a person has an accident or suffers from an ailment, his/her case details can be monitored remotely from anywhere.
This is very useful in emergency services and also in rehabilitation services. The patient undergoing treatment will be given all the necessary treatment right at his/her home or office. This will be much more convenient than visiting a hospital, to get the necessary clinical support.
Great Advantages Electronic Health Records
Another great advantage of using electronic health records and EMR’s is that it increases the productivity of the doctors and other professionals involved in providing healthcare services. For example, the time taken by nurses to input the information and enter the data into the computer, is reduced to a few seconds.
This means that the doctors will be able to complete their work faster, with better accuracy. Also, the doctors will be able to make appropriate decisions, when a patient requires a surgery, within a much lesser time.
What are some of the concerns about electronic health records?
Overall, electronic medical records are very beneficial for both the hospital and the physician. There is no longer any physical contact between the doctor and the patient, which was one of the reasons for the traditional medical practices to suffer from problems like disjointedness and irregularity in the clinical records.
With ios, all the data, irrespective of where they are stored, are available on the physician’s laptop or desktop. This means that clinical documentation is much more uniform across all health care facilities and clinics, due to the uniform way in which the clinical data is entered.
