EHR Consult: Training

Training While Keeping Patients Flowing
 

It’s not reasonable to expect a physician practice to shut down while providers and staff are learning how to use an EHR. These tips from three Vermont physicians will help you organize EHR training and keep patients flowing through the practice.

  • Start the learning process early. Evergreen Family Health in Williston started the learning process a year before go-live by getting providers and staff comfortable with using computers. Providers started bringing laptop computers into exam rooms to pull up websites and check drug interactions during patient visits. To wean themselves off dictation, practitioners began using voice recognition software. Receptionists took messages in a Word template, rather than writing them by hand.
     
  • Change the workflow beforehand.  Getting an EHR often means changing the practice’s workflow. Evergreen Family Health implemented workflow changes before go-live (while continuing to use paper charts), so that providers and staff wouldn’t have to cope with learning a new workflow at the same time they were learning how to use the EHR.
     
  • Train in two or more groups. To keep the practice’s doors open while training was underway, both White River Family Practice and Winooski Family Health split their staffs into two groups. Half the staff trained in the morning, the other half trained in the afternoon in a room set aside for training. The half that wasn’t in training saw patients.
     
  • Slow things down during training. Lessen the pressure on both providers and staff during the training period by reducing the number of patients scheduled for visits.
     
  • Develop a cheat sheet. An abbreviated “cheat sheet” was developed by the leadership team at White River Family Practice for the staff to refer to when using the new EHR.
     
  • Keep the learning going. The process of learning to efficiently use the EHR continues long after the vendor’s trainer has left. Providers at both Evergreen Family Health and White River Family Practice meet regularly to share information on how to use the EHR better.

 

There’s a lot more to planning for successful EHR training. VITL’s experienced EHR implementation specialists can work with you to ensure that training is effective and successful. To learn more about VITL’s services, click here or contact Larry Gilbert at 802-839-1943 or email lgilbert@vitl.net