Their biggest challenge, according to Susan Helbig, director of patient data services, was to organize the work and train the end users. For healthcare organizations considering a conversion, Helbig suggests they take a look at where they want to go, where they really are, what their staffing is, and what they have to change. This may include staffing during weekends, changing assignments and whatever makes sense for improving the workflow. For example, after choosing to back scan two years of data for all discharged patients, Harborview added about 10 people to perform the input. A healthcare organization that is considering adopting an electronic medical record needs to gather a lot of information and make some critical decisions.
Suppliers can play a vital role in project planning.
It may sound like a shameless plug for consultants, but having this evaluation performed by an objective entity is worth much more than the cost of the study. The hospital may not be ready for the project, and stopping can be hard enough without telling three suppliers that their time has been wasted. Results of the evaluation can help determine which suppliers are most appropriate to contact. When the information is presented to suppliers, each supplier has a common set of information to review. Responses are therefore more comparable.