Meaningful Use

Recognizing potential efficiencies and cost-savings that electronic medical records (EMR) can deliver to the healthcare industry, the U.S. government has offered financial incentives to medical practices and healthcare organizations that can demonstrate meaningful use of EMR technology. As specified by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, meaningful use is defined as using EMR in certain ways which may include:

• Maintaining lists of active patient diagnoses and current medications
• Capturing and charting specific demographic information and vital signs
• Ordering medications and issuing prescriptions electronically
• Providing patients with a summary of their office visit
• Giving patients access to a copy of their health information
• Checking for drug interactions and drug allergies

The federal government believes that meaningful use of EMR will not only help to doctors focus on patient care, but will also help provide automatic alerts and reminders to patients, provide easy access to information to assist clinical decisions, improve patient access to their own medical records and enhance the coordination of care among multiple providers.

Learn more about meaningful use of EMR.

Achieve meaningful use with Centricity Advance.

While smaller medical practices can benefit from electronic medical records management and qualify for the same financial incentives for meaningful use that larger practices and organizations can, the smaller practice faces a bigger hurdle in implementing the necessary technology. Many electronic medical records software systems needed to demonstrate meaningful use are complex and costly, requiring a large capital expenditure upfront as well as expensive IT resources on an ongoing basis to maintain and upgrade the application. For the smaller practice, a web based solution that allows practitioners to consult medical records online is an effective yet affordable alternative. With a web based solution, the software is available online and practitioners need only have access to a computer and the Internet to use the application. There is no software to purchase, install or maintain. Physicians can access records from the office, the hospital or any remote location with Internet access, and patient records are more secure, since data resides not within the practice on a server but in a highly secure data center with advanced protection.

Use Centricity Advance to make meaningful enhancements to patient care.

GE Healthcare has developed Centricity Advance, a web based solution that has been certified as a 2011/2012 complete EHR for Meaningful Use Stage 1 and can help smaller practices both transition to and achieve meaningful use of EMR. Centricity Advance combines EMR technology with physician practice management, web based medical billing software and a patient portal to provide a comprehensive solution for the independent practitioner and smaller practices. Practitioners can use Centricity Advance to help them:

• Demonstrate meaningful use of EMR and qualify for financial incentives
• Put medical records, literature and drug allergy/interaction information at the physician's fingertips, to support more informed decision-making
• Improve cash flow management and revenue cycle management through greater visibility into practice finances and more accurate claims submissions
• Give patients greater and more meaningful access to their healthcare records through a patient self-service portal

Learn more now about Centricity Advance and meaningful use.