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CHCC to fully implement EHR system within 2 months
The Commonwealth Health Corp.’s system that will shorten the wait time for medical records and billings will soon be fully implemented within two months, according to CHCC’s chief information officer Tony Reyes.
The Electronic Health Records system will help the hospital by making information readily available and secure to authorized users at the hospitals, mostly physicians.
According to Reyes, all physicians, including private providers with admitting privileges, will be required to use the EHR.
So far the public hospital’s inpatient clinic and Kagman Community Health Center are the only ones using the EHR system right now.
Reyes said the system will soon be rolled out for the outpatient clinic, which includes the emergency room, women, adult, children, physical therapy, respiratory therapy, and both the Tinian and Rota health centers.
“Participation under the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Medicaid Incentive program is voluntary. However, given the inherent benefits of using EHR, the CHCC is committed to the complying with the program regulations,” Reyes said.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 authorized CMS to provide financial incentives to eligible professionals and hospitals that demonstrate “meaningful use” of certified EHR technology under two programs: the Medicare Incentive program or the Medicaid Incentive program.
Last year CHC got $1.4 million as an incentive after it demonstrated “meaningful use” of the EHR system. The next incentive, amounting to $1.1 million, is expected to come in once CHC satisfies the requirements of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Reyes said the benefits of using the EHR is access to a patient’s record; clinical documentation is easier to read and understand; documentation, coding, and billing are completed in a quick manner; and there is a built-in system safeguard verifying drug allergy and drug-to-drug interaction for medications prescribed to patients.
