Challenges of EHR Data Conversion and How to Overcome Them
Conducting an inclusive EHR data conversion for your healthcare, pharmaceutical, or other related business can feel like a complex endeavor. Clinics and hospitals all over the world need to have the modern electronic health record (EHR) solutions necessary for continuity and improved patient care. However, moving from paper records to something much easier to manage takes a bit of pre-planning and mitigating risks.
Challenge 1: Data Loss and Inaccuracy Data loss is a severe concern of EHR data conversion. You do not want to lose medical histories, treatment records, or medications lists that end up attached to a different profile. That can lead to significantly risky outcomes where one patient is being treated for something utterly unrelated to the actual diagnosis.
A good workaround to avoid data loss is implementing comprehensive data validation and quality assurance checks during the conversion. You want to work with a team that will plug any gaps in the data lifecycle so there is nothing to worry about as legacy documents are brought into the digital realm.
Challenge 2: Compatibility Issues Our team at Infowerks continually provides EHR data conversion services to clients operating under legacy data structures. One of our capabilities is to work with different systems as the critical information you need is not somehow lost in translation.
We address this issue through meticulous pre-planning. In some cases, this may involve custom mapping of data fields and adhere to interoperability standards. We already have extensive guides that map out how to move data from an older system into the new, but we can adapt these maps to best fit your unique business situation.
Challenge 3: Downtime and Disruption Infowerks will do everything in its power to lessen disruption to your regular business operations. When you experience downtime, it almost always leads to a bottleneck in clinical workflow. That can strain patients to provider relationships and lower your potential revenue stream.
We work hard to minimize this disruption by introducing everything from EHR data conversion during off-peak times or carrying the entire process over in smaller steps to ensure you remain online and active in your core mission.
Challenge 4: Cost Overruns The final challenge common to EHR data conversion we see are budgetary overruns. Working with an inexperienced team will likely result in escalating costs whenever the conversion leads to unexpected downtimes or requires additional resources.
We help you set a realist budget and offer continuity project management with clear communication. This avoids hiccups along the way, so your final EHR data conversion remains inside the time and cost estimates we provide.
Wrapping Up While an EHR data conversion is undoubtedly a demanding period in your business, it is necessary to remain competitive in today’s marketplace. You have to have a way to provide detailed records to other providers, clients, and team members so the quality of care being delivered is top-notch.
Learn more about how to implement an EHR data conversion in your business by reaching out to our team at Infowerks. We look forward to being your trusted business partner and EHR provider.
