Health IT

Primary-care doc and long-time EHR user Robert Lamberts outlines common EHR implementation mistakes and offers tips for success.

How to create phone system efficiencies without driving your patients nuts.

We know EHRs can improve practice efficiency, but can they improve patient care? The evidence is suggesting they can. From disease management tools to automated reminders, EHRs are offering welcome improvements in patient outcomes.

Here’s a list of our favorite apps developed specifically for physicians’ diagnostic and information needs.

Voice recognition software has gotten more sophisticated and easier to use. Still, is it good enough yet to be worth the time and money it will cost you to use it?

Baffled by servers, networks, and other hardware? Turns out you don’t have to be a techie to make good decisions about your practice’s technology needs. Here’s how to gear up smart.

Interoperability is the buzz word right now in health IT, but how close are we to exchanging information across wildly fragmented data systems? We investigate the progress and trends.

Insidious software and hidden viruses living in your computers could be threatening confidential records and practice productivity. Here’s how to protect yourself.

You may be unwittingly violating your patients’ confidentiality - and trust - on your blog or social media site. Check out these guidelines for staying legal and ethical online.

Confused about meaningful use and EHR certification? We’ve got the information you need to go confidently into the EHR marketplace. Here’s your guide.

Considering outsourcing the business side of your practice to a revenue cycle management firm? Let someone deal with the claims and collections headaches … right? Maybe. We examine the pros, cons, expenses, and benefits.

Here’s our primer on the tools that can help you manage the complex reporting requirements of pay-for-performance programs.

In this podcast, Robert Tennant, senior policy advisor for the Medical Group Management Association, explains the EHR meaningful use draft criteria.

Social networking is all the rage, but be wary if your staff are posting updates to Facebook. Setting a few ground rules can help avoid damage to your practice.

How far away are we from having electronic medical records that can truly talk to each other, across health systems and across regions? We decided to find out.

You need a software upgrade or workaround and your vendor is balking. Now what?

New technology is supposed to reduce your staffing needs. But how do you get staff on board with a change that may end up costing some of them their jobs?

Have you heard about that “free” electronic medical records system that your local hospital, vendor, or the government is offering? Sounds good, right? But be careful. While there are ways to get EMR software for little or no cost, there are still expenses (and sometimes other strings) attached.

An EMR purchase is a business decision like any other. It’s an expensive decision, true, and it requires change. But it’s still just a business decision. What questions should you really be asking yourself?

Some people find auto-dialing machines annoying, but they’re more efficient than having your staff call each of your next-day’s appointments to deliver a simple reminder. And they work just as well.

What are physicians like you doing when it comes to purchasing new office technologies? Our Fifth Annual Technology Survey cuts through the hype and gives it to you straight.

If you don’t have a policy on staff e-mail usage, you need one. Here’s why.

With more emphasis being placed on patients to self-manage their care, now may be a good time to introduce a PHR.

President Obama has promised as much as $44,000 to physicians using EHRs as part of the stimulus package he signed this year. Payments start in 2011. But there’s a catch.

In the market for an EHR? Here’s a step-by-step selection guide by internist and pediatrician Rob Lamberts, who’s been through the process himself.

Laptop and PDAs have become the office-away-from-the-office for many. But physicians, especially, need to be aware of the potential security risk posed by a lost gadget. Protect sensitive data with encryption software - before it goes missing.

Patients want more from your Web site than a photo of you and directions to your office. They’re demanding interactivity and utility: They want to get stuff done online, like setting up appointments and making payments. Here’s how to have the coolest Web site in town.

Is your IT guy too powerful? In a small office, just one staffer often holds the keys to the kingdom. What if he quits abruptly - or worse, holds you hostage?

Many practices in the market for an EHR have been leery of ASP models. But as Web connections get faster and the technology improves, more vendors are delivering acceptable results.

Are you a small office skating by on IT? Here’s why paying for a quarterly IT checkup might save you big bucks in the long run.