How EHRs Support Value-Based Care

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• How EHRs Support Value-Based Care
• From treatments to billing, modern health care is
  complex. While scenarios differ from person to
  person, patients typically
• Visit healthcare professionals or facilities who
  perform consultations or procedures
• Receive bills for every consultation and
  procedure
• Pay for each of these health care services
  through insurance companies or medical programs,
  out-of-pocket payments, or a combination of these
• Although this framework is still common, a
  competing model is emerging. Its called
  value-based care.
• Basically, instead of paying for each
  consultation or procedure, insurers who use
  value-based care reward and reimburse health care
  providers who have improved patient outcomes.
• Because it might be difficult to measure value,
  the National Academy of Medicine has created
  criteria that could determine it. According to
  the organization, value-based care includes
  services that it categorizes under the
  abbreviation STEEEP safe, timely, effective,
  efficient, equitable and patient-centered.
• Health care providers could use electronic health
  records (EHRs) and other tools if theyre
  wondering how to implement value-based care.
  These tools could make life easier for providers,
  patients, and health insurers.
• To understand what STEEEP is and how such tools
  could help enhance value-based care, it might
  help to break down STEEEP and analyze it one
  letter at a time

S Safe Do no harm is the essence of the
Hippocratic oath. It certainly applies to
value-based care, and electronic health records
(EHRs) could help eye care professionals
emphasize this safety. After all, EHRs are
records. They record developments in patients
health, what practices did or are doing to
address these developments, and the outcomes of
these developments.
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Records could indicate whether people are
allergic to certain medications. If doctors dont
prescribe these medications to patients with
allergies, theyre preventing reactions that
could require medical care. Such prevention
preserves patients health. It also saves
patients, medical providers, and insurance
providers money and time because they wont have
to attend to paperwork and other hassles. T
Timely Even in non-emergency situations, timely
medical services are better medical
services. Medical EHR software could help
practices save time and make more timely
decisions. Offices that use EHR systems that
integrate with practice management systems store
all their practice-based information in one
place, which means employees and patients could
locate and use this information more quickly and
easily. Instead of searching through multiple
databases or files, medical staff members could
look for information in one online area. With the
time they saved during this search, staff members
could answer questions and perform other, more
patient-centered tasks. E Effective Electronic
health records also contribute to more effective
assistance. If medical professionals want to
prescribe specific medications, they could check
their patients electronic health records to see
if theyre using other medications or doing other
things that could affect the effectiveness of
those drugs. Professionals could also check
their patients records to see how prescriptions
and other remedies have worked. If the
medications or procedures have been effective,
professionals could keep prescribing, performing,
and recommending them.
E Efficient Since they aim to simplify
matters, electronic health records offer
efficiency as well as value.
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Using EHRs, medical professionals could determine
if patients have undergone recent tests for
certain conditions or if they or other
professionals have prescribed certain remedies.
Such checks could save time and money. Also, if
health care providers need to refer their
patients to other medical professionals, EHRs
include a wealth of information in one location,
so professionals can transfer documentation
between offices. Each health care professional
could add their own contributions to their
patients files, which could make it easier to
coordinate treatment among multiple medical
offices. E Equitable Equity is another
hallmark of value-based care, and EHRs could
promote this fairness. People might
discriminate, but medicine shouldnt. EHRs arent
biased accounts but factual descriptions of
patients medical conditions. This documentation
could also contain other information about
factors that could affect patients overall
health. Records could include information about
patients family histories, where they live,
whether they experienced physical and/or mental
trauma, and if they participate in programs that
pay for their medical care or assist them in
other ways. Knowing these things could help
medical professionals understand their patients
backgrounds and determine the type of help they
might need. The determinations could determine
if patients are underserved and need more help or
different kinds of help. They could show medical
practices where they could best allocate their
resources. P Patient-centered While optometry
EHR software and other systems strive to simplify
work for professionals and their practices, such
systems ultimately exist to help patients. An
EHR record exists to serve a patient. Linking
this record to a medical offices practice
management system helps practices give the best
care possible to this patient and others.
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When practices link EHR and other systems, they
often give patients more opportunities to
interact with their doctors, medical practices,
and health insurance providers. They could
discover if theyve had particular procedures and
the outcomes of those tests. They could use this
information to make more informed health
decisions. By making more informed decisions,
patients are more equipped to treat existing
conditions and prevent future ones. Once again,
EHRs and other information could provide
preventive assistance that could help avoid
negative health outcomes, prevent frustration,
and save money, which could all contribute to
value-based care. But patients arent the only
ones benefiting from value-based models. Just as
the National Academy of Medicine advocates using
STEEEP principles, it also explains that the
well-being of health care professionals is also
important. Because they coordinate processes and
potentially save hassle, using EHRs and other
tools could also improve physician and staff
well-being. Contacting Eye Care Leaders could
help you find and implement such tools. Less
stressed professionals could provide better care
to grateful patients. In the end, providing value
isnt just about creating and managing efficient
systems and tools. Its also how patients and
health care professionals value each other.