• Electronic Medical Records enable providers to quickly access a patient's medical history.doctor desk image by dinostock from Fotolia.com
  
  Electronic Medical Records (EMR) is an invaluable tool to health care providers by making a patient's medical records and history instantly available via a computer application. Some systems are relatively simple, others are quite intricate in their application. While there is tremendous benefit to a heath care organization, the underlying philosophy and guiding principles must always be absolute records security, dependability and convenience, and patient-oriented.
  
  

EMR Implementation

• A system of electronic medical records is generally tailored to each health care organization's needs. Once the information technology designing and building the system understand a health care organization's specific needs, they can adapt a system that provides the appropriate "care processes" for medical personnel and their patients. Dependening upon the size of an organization, creating a system can take as long as two years from the initial stages of development to the "go live" stage and subsequent testing, training and full implementation.
  
  

EMR Records Security

• Privacy and confidentiality are the most important aspects in building patient trust. Consequently, one of the guiding principles of any EMR system is electronic security and surveillance technology that maintains the integrity of the system and the records it contains. Regular security reviews and updates are necessary to ensure the safety of a patient's privacy. At the same time, the system should be capable of providing electronic syndromic surveillance data--information on emerging health risks and outbreaks such as the flu or other illnesses identified by the organization's physicians. This should be available to public health agencies without violating patient confidentiality.
  
  

Dependability and Convenience

• An EMR system is tailored to meet the needs of each organization and its particular circumstances and culture.Lovely Doctor image by Paul Moore from Fotolia.com
  
  Developing an EMR system requires distinctive applications to meet the needs of each organization and its particular circumstances and culture. Doctors should be able to query patient data, x-rays and other images, test results and other important information. Consequently, it is vital for the IT personnel developing the system to understand the needs and desires of the system's end users. There are several systems that need to incorporation to make the system truly functional. Key functions include a reporting system for adverse drug reactions, antibiotic dosage control system, a diagnostic guide system, support system for children receiving all nutrition intravenously and a marker system for specific diseases. Additionally, there needs to be a barcode system to double check drugs and other crucial supplies, patient education and information systems, a nursing process system and a system to track insurance, Medicare/Medicaid and other similar data.
  
  

EMR Patient Oriented

• Ultimately, the EMR system must be oriented for the benefit of the patient. Convenience for medical staff in calling up data is important; however, the benefit must always be for the patient. The EMR system should be capable of providing relevant data on a patient's medications, summarize the patient's referral and treatment record and, most importantly, the system should be accessible by the patient to allow him or her to review lab tests, see a list of their medication, show summaries of their office, clinic or hospital visits and other pertinent data. Additionally, the system should allow for patient feedback and communication with the health care providers.