EMR Implementation: How Do You Stack Up Against Your Peers?

I think by now, we're past the point of arguing whether introducing complex technology into the healthcare continuum is a good idea. Whether to help caregivers make the right decisions more quickly, to better integrate clinical and financial systems to cut down on waste, government mandates, or a host of other good reasons to automate many parts of the healthcare process, hospitals and health systems are investing as never before in technological innovation.

Besides, even if you're stubborn enough to think it's not a good idea, or, at least, that it's unproven and too expensive, you know the feds are also behind the push. And when a customer that pays the freight for up to 50% and more of your patient flow says "jump," most of you who haven't seen the need for an EMR are now asking, "how high?"

Well now there's a way for you to see how your organization, be it a hospital or health system, measures up to your peers in terms of progress toward the many goals of EMR implementation. In the latest survey on EMR Implementation by the HealthLeaders Media Intelligence Division, dozens of CEOs and hundreds of other leaders in the C-suite talk frankly about how seriously their organization is taking the importance of the EMR.

For instance, you might be curious to find out:

• Whether your peers are interested in funding EMR systems for independent medical groups.
• How far away your peers are from fully implementing an ambulatory electronic medical record.
• Whether your peers' EMR solutions contain a practice management system.

And the depth of the survey doesn't stop there. I was stunned that 4% of our respondents don't have plans to implement an EMR at all. They may represent critical access hospitals, but still. I was also mildly surprised that only 21% of you are confident that you have a fully implemented EMR solution right now. That means there's still a lot of work to do.

It's a short survey, and it doesn't take much of your time to view, but this type of just-in-time market research is essential information for you as you craft your strategic plan and budget your precious dollars toward electronic solutions for your employees, your clinicians, and most importantly, your patients. Best of all, it's free.