Going paperless will not happen overnight; however, creating new habits will help make it second nature for you, your staff, and your patients. And you can maximize the benefits that electronic health records (EHRs) and other automated services have to offer. Here are six ways to get started on going paperless.
1. Transition to electronic health records (or if you have, skip to step 2).
If you haven’t already taken this step, it will serve as the foundation for going paperless. Most physicians already have taken the leap: TMA’s 2020 Survey of Texas Physicians shows 89% of physicians have an EHR. In that case, it would be wise to also implement a contingency plan should your EHR system go down. Physicians and their staff also should follow a standardized process for storing and adding information into the EHR. (Check out TMA’s policies and procedures guide.)
2. Use a patient portal.
Most EHRs offer patient portal capability, giving you and your staff the ability to communicate test results or other pertinent medical information directly with your patients. Using a patient portal also can help you meet Promoting Interoperability measures under the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Quality Payment Program, and comply with the 21st Century Cures Act information-blocking requirements.
Patient portals are also useful in collecting payments: You can send statements electronically, and patients can remit payments online through the portal. Some EHRs also offer capabilities for established patients to make their own appointments. This can help reduce burdens on physician practices and resolves phone access issues.
3. E-Prescribe.
Most EHRs now have the capability to electronically transmit prescriptions for controlled and noncontrolled medications. Practices can incorporate a standardized process for capturing patient pharmacy information during check-in and confirm that information with patients when prescribing electronically. E-prescribing also can help practices eliminate dosage errors and handle refill requests.
4. Consider a human resources system.
Various web-based solutions are available for human resources files, compliance records, and even employee payroll. They also may integrate systems for tracking employee attendance and work performance. The practice should establish a plan for disposing of existing paper documents once they are digitized, and a process for destroying and disposing of documents going forward. For example, some proper disposal techniques are use of HIPAA-compliant shredders, contracting with a professional shredding service, or incineration.
5. Convert to electronic fax.
A recent poll by the Medical Group Management Association found that 89% of health care organizations still use a fax machine, primarily to share patient records and lab/test results, make referrals, and communicate with payer sand pharmacies.
Electronic fax technology can integrate with EHRs and help alleviate the bottlenecks and inefficiencies that currently exist with paper fax. Additionally, electronic fax should integrate seamlessly with other patient management functions, such as video chat, SMS text, electronic forms, and a virtual waiting room, ultimately streamlining the entire patient experience.
6. Make paper inconvenient.
Similar to eliminating envelopes for patients, making paper inconvenient for your staff can influence their behavior. For example, you can get rid of excess fax machines and printers from multiple office locations, install dual monitors for increased screen space to view documents, and sign up for paperless statements from all service providers.
Maneey Sharma is vice president of the business of medicine at Harris County Medical Society.