EHR Improves the Patient Experience, According to Recent Survey

Does it make a difference to your patients whether your practice uses an EHR or paper records? According to a recent survey by leading information technology research firm Software Advice, it does.

Software Advice found that many physicians are still hesitant to utilize EHRs in the exam room. Even in practices where EHR software has been employed, many doctors continue to use paper during an exam, and wait to enter notes into the EHR after the patient visit has concluded. The idea behind this method is to preserve the patient's in-office experience, though patients included in the study say that not using EHR technology during an examination actually diminishes their experience.

Nearly 4,500 patients were asked how they felt about their doctor using EHRs during an examination, and what truly impacts the patient experience. Here is what they found:

• Patients were asked if it would bother them if their doctor recorded information on a computer or tablet during an exam. The survey found 80 percent of the patients indicated they would not be bothered
• Over half of the patients surveyed would prefer their doctors use an EHR over paper health records, in order to increase efficiency during office visits
• The majority of patients included in the survey indicated their preference for EHRs over paper records was due to EHRs being more secure and containing more accurate information
• More than half of the patients surveyed would be willing to switch physicians or practices to gain online access to their own EHR

Have you embraced EHR technology in your practice? If not, keep in mind that over half the patients included in this survey indicated that they would rather visit a practice that has an EHR system in place. Therefore, implementing such a system into your practice may be necessary to keep your patients satisfied for long-term relationships.

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You can learn how to seamlessly integrate an Electronic Health Record (EHR) portal to your practice's website by using Dr. Leonardo. Contact us today to learn more about what we offer!