Emr Communications

Electronic Medical Records

Noelle Cunningham

HCS/490

July 9, 2012

Jennifer Pharr, Ph.D

Electronic Medical Records

An Electronic Medical Record (EMR) is a digital form of a patient’s medical chart. This technology brings advantages that encourage health care providers to implement such systems. One benefit of an EMR system is that it helps improve patient safety. The easy access and small storage capability help providers to deliver a higher quality of care. With this technology, users must take precautionary measures to ensure patient confidentiality. Moreover, this electronic record keeping allows communication to be more effective between patient and provider. It allows more time with the patient and less time searching through papers for necessary information. The use of certain media and social networking may help encourage more quality patient care. In addition, the use of an Electronic Medical Record can help to promote an organization with its appealing benefits.

Patient Benefits

Electronic Medical Records provide the ability to deliver efficient, coordinated, quality care. The most significant benefit to the patient is that an EMR helps improve patient safety. Within the Electronic Medical Record is the patient’s information. This includes demographics, insurance, diagnoses, medications, allergies, and other vital medical information. The provider can access this record easily and conveniently. Because this information is together in one place and easily accessible, the risk for medical error reduces. This improves patient safety. In addition, this tool can help improve the relationship between patient and provider (Richards, 2009). The health care provider uses the electronic medical record to deliver a higher quality of care. Therefore, this higher quality helps increase patient safety.

Maintaining Patient Confidentiality

With the implementation of an EMR system, the provider must take certain measures...