By now I think most of us in healthcare IT have either spent time reading the requirements for Stage 1 of meaningful use. Others have listened to the many webinars that are helping hospitals and physicians understand “42 CFR Parts 412, et al” and “45 CFR Part 170”– the fancy name on the Federal Register documents we should all be familiar with.

So what’s missing and will we see it in Stage 2? What about Stage 3?

The incentive is for hospitals and physicians to implement an EHR. So let me emphasize this – Electronic Health Record. But the big clinical piece, CPOE, does not an EHR make. Nor does it even qualify if you want to call it an EMR. Show me the big piece of the puzzle. The next stages – hopefully Stage 2 – will call for clinical documentation. Electronic charting by all practitioners will give some real meaning to the electronic chart. And complete the picture with resulting. Not sure what good it is to have an electronic order go to the lab or radiology if clinicians have to chase down a paper chart so they can see a result.

Granted, these things are usually implemented hand in hand, but if organizations and physicians look for the easy way (aka, the cheap way) out we will never see the intent of President Bush’s and President Obama’s call to digitize medical records. Are there other modules to be implemented? Of course there are. Think ahead. Don’t wait for Stage 2 and Stage 3. Do the right thing. Get a strategic plan that will guide your organization through all the components that will make up an Electronic Health Record.

Jeff Kerber
Director, General Consulting
http://www.inteck-inc.com/arraservices.html