A sunset can be a beautiful sight. Unless, of course, it’s your old EHR sunsetting. That is a cause for concern. When your EHR is sunsetting, your vendor discontinues its active development, support, or maintenance. It means it’s time for it to be replaced or phased out. This can happen for various reasons:
- Newer or more advanced systems have been launched.
- The EHR vendor decided to discontinue the product.
- There were changes in healthcare regulations and requirements
- Mergers or acquisitions
Or any other reason. Sunsetting an electronic health record (EHR) system represents a significant transition for healthcare organizations and requires careful management to minimize disruptions and provide high-quality patient care.
What to Do When Your EHR Is Sunsetting?
Whatever the reason for sunsetting, switching your EHR to a new one becomes crucial once your old one sunsets. This can be a challenging process and disrupt your practice’s workflows. At this point, you need to consider migrating to a new EHR system to ensure the continuity of your operations.
This is the time for you to research the different options available to you on the market so that you can invest in the best possible solution. Before switching to new EHR system, there are some things you need to ascertain.
Assess Your Needs
The first thing you need to take care of is assessing the needs of your practice. Every practice has unique needs; identifying yours will help you choose the right system. A specialty-specific EHR will help you tend to the needs of your practice, tackle specific challenges, and improve the overall efficiency of your workflows. It also helps you analyze specific data according to your specialty, analyze clinical insights, and make data-driven decisions. A specialty-specific solution will help you avoid too much customization and fit into your workflow. You need to factor in certain other things, like who uses your system the most, whether you want to scale your practice, and any existing gaps or limitations in meeting your organization’s needs. Answering all these questions will help avoid confusion when you are looking for the right EHR for your practice.
Evaluate your Options
Selecting a new EHR software that aligns with your organization’s goals, workflows, and plans is critical. This is why you first assess all your needs and requirements. Next, you should do thorough research and evaluate all your choices to make an informed decision. This is the part where you check out multiple vendors to see which one fits your requirements. When talking with different vendors, consider scalability, interoperability, and ease of use. Make a list of vendors that meet your requirements, then evaluate them based on factors such as track record, customer reviews, reputation, and technology. You also need to ensure your vendor has a support team and provides training, as this will be the most important thing during implementation.
Consider Costs
Cost is a major factor when looking for a new EHR. Your EHR needs to have all functionalities within your budget. You do not want a case where you implement a budget-friendly EHR that misses out on key features that need to be budgeted later. Assess the cost and the benefits offered within that cost. Find out whether you must pay for hosting, data storage, and clearinghouse fees. Additionally, find out if you need to pay for analytics and patient engagement and if your EHR regularly updates with regulatory changes. Once you have done your research, decide on the EHR you feel is the best fit for your practice.
Collaborating with your Team
Once you have chosen your EHR, you must collaborate with different teams in your organization for implementation. Transitioning to a new EHR involves sensitive patient data, legal considerations, and compliance requirements. Work with legal experts to assess data privacy and security requirements during the transition and ensure HIPAA compliance. Your team should also identify potential risks and develop strategies to mitigate the risks that may arise during the transition.
Plan your Implementation
The next step is implementation of new electronic helalth record (EHR) health record . Your implementation plan should be well-structured with clear timelines to keep your transition timely and to avoid delays and disruptions in your workflow. It is also important to make sure your staff is trained. If not, hold training sessions to enlighten your team about the ins and outs of the new system. Other types of training include revenue cycle management, benchmarking, patient engagement strategies, analytics and benchmarking, and marketing and promotion guidance.
Conclusion
The sunsetting of an EHR can mean the start of a new era. You can successfully migrate to a new EHR with meticulous planning and a strategic approach. Transitioning to a new EHR can be manageable. CareCloud is the leading provider of cloud-based EHR solutions that help practices drive better clinical, financial, and operational outcomes. Contact CareCloud today to take your practice to the next level.
