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  The Health Record Review
by Jeff Marion


Buying your EHR from Apple's iTunes store

Posted on Wed, Aug 12, 2009 - 11:12 am

We all know EHRs are expensive, that's why the federal government has promised some $45,000 to physicians who start using one over the next few years. Even Wal-Mart's EHR is pricy, charging physicians $25,000 up front with recurring monthly license fees. Meanwhile, you can get started with your very own EHR for under $200 on Apple's iTunes store.

The road to fully integrated EHRs is intimidating. First you need to buy all the server hardware, then configure the ultra-encrypted wireless network, then buy the tablet PCs, then train all your staff. Meanwhile, the user forums for most big-name EHR vendors are crammed full of bug reports and problems with the EHR software.

No wonder physicians are hesitant to drop thousands of dollars on an unproven EHR.

It appears Caretools has thought of this, offering its iChart EHR for the iPhone, immediately available to anyone on the iTunes store. Before you scoff that it must be a limited-functionality, toy of an EHR, consider this: it offers ePrescribing, transmission of lab reports, ICD9-compliant billing code functionality, and a sophisticated menu system to quickly create SOAP and Procedure notes.

It might not be CCHIT-certified (yet) or guarantee your eligibility for "meaningful use" funding, but at such a low price point, it could be a great way to get your physicians comfortable with standard EHR functionality.

Meanwhile, other big name vendors have entered the iPhone EHR market. Allscripts offers its Allscripts Remote® EHR for free on the iTunes store. The mobile app links into the physician's existing Allscripts EHR installation, providing a stripped-down interface for quick and easy remote access.

There has been much buzz over the pros and cons of an iPhone, or iPhone-like environment powering EHR technology. Drawbacks are "small screen fatigue", the additional clicking and scrolling needed to navigate "mini-templates", and images that are too small to inform clinical decision making.

However, the price sure is right, and some of these issues could be addressed with sleeker UIs and bolt-on hardware peripherals for viewing certain screens within the EHR.

The iPhone also offers promise when connected to "cloud computing" and web-based EHRs. There are plenty of CCHIT-certified web-based EHRs, and ARRA funding will be available to those who use these EHRs meaningfully, regardless if they are accessed via a traditional PC or an iPhone.

So before you go spending thousands of dollars on hardware and training, why not get started with a sub-$200 EHR? Think of it as a trial run, to see how an EHR fits with your busy practice.


Comments

Posted by romulus on Tue, Mar 30, 2010 - 03:11 pm.

The EHR Incentive Calculator quickly and easily calculates the stimulus incentive you can expect to receive from the U.S. Government under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). Qualified health care providers* will receive up to $44,000 in stimulus incentives by demonstrating meaningful utilization* of Electronic Health Records (EHR). + Get an accurate financial calculation of EHR stimulus reimbursement.+ Demystify the provisions of the incentives in the stimulus legislation.+ Plan your EMR/EHR implementation with confidence.+ Calculate expected penalty for non-adoption of an EHR/EMR system.+ Tailor a compensation schedule showing that 70% of the payout is in the first 2 years.ARRA HITECH Act:The ARRA mandates that healthcare providers who adopt and use certified electronic health records will be eligible for up to $44,000 in Medicare bonus payments (per provider). submit website

Posted by myEMRchoice on Tue, Aug 18, 2009 - 01:32 pm.

Electronic Medical Records provided via iPhones/Smart phones seems to be a low cost of entry into the EMR market, offering patient convenience and a WOW factor. CCHIT certification is a must, and can be accomplished fairly easily as many EMR vendors already have. However, and this is a big BUT, a Smartphone based EMR app can theoretically be downloaded by thousands of medical practices/patients daily to share information. Is any company prepared for the immediate onslaught of support calls? This obstacle cannot be overlooked.

Posted by Applica722 on Wed, Aug 12, 2009 - 08:01 pm.

As a healthcare vendor and healthcare professional, providers have many options in the utilization of an EMR. There is no perfect EMR/EHR however ASP comes close.I have worked with many powerhouse companies whose systems have no power and the price is staggering, considering the build, design and configurations involved would make any Provider or Nurse feel as if they needed additional degrees in computer programming. There are web based systesm which are much more efficient/ configurable/provides ease of use/ is not contractually binding (they have the option to terminate provided the vendor recieves adequate notice) and the data will also be returned for less than $200.00 to the Provider. Thes systems are truly integrated, (interoperable) HL7 compatible, is able to conduct E-prescribing, orders management and Results. Why isn't anyone speaking about these products. Simple, because they are not the big powerhouses who claim their products are integrated when it is actually interfaced (big difference) and the implementation is lenthy, time consuming and involves resources which providers seldom have to build out the system. It is difficult enough to train physicians to utilize these simple systems and now this? Good Luck to you the learning curve in these hosptials and providers offices that recieves the canned training can barely make it. Technology is good but that is moving a little too fast.Hopefully this product can do all that is mentioned for $200.00 and you're not paying for add ons which will still top $40,000.