If integrative medicine is the practice of treating the whole patient, not just trying to “fix” an illness, shouldn’t the client’s chart be whole as well? Paper just isn’t cutting it anymore. When you use an EMR, your integrative medicine patient charts become tools that help you practice medicine, not just a scratch pad. Find out why an integrative EMR can help you “chart” a whole new course to patient record keeping.
Space Jam
Whether you’re looking to expand your practice or have reached that perfect patient ratio, there’s no need to be paying for space. After a few years in practice, you’ll be devoting more than what’s necessary to store paper patient records, and integrative medicine physicians are not immune to the required seven year hold. Instead, let your integrative EMR be your electronic filing cabinet.
World’s Biggest Briefcase
It sounds like one of those tourist traps, like the World’s Biggest Ball of Yarn or the Country’s Tallest Desk, but integrative medicine EMRs have the potential to become the biggest, most prolific briefcase you’ll ever own (and you never have to worry about it clashing with your outfit). That’s because storing your integrative medicine patient charts inside an EMR means you can take them anywhere. Review them on the go while at a conference, access them from home, and respond to inquiries without having to step foot in the office.
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Collective Brain Power
A paper patient chart does one thing – receive data. You can write on it, scratch something out, staple some more pages together, but there’s no two-way communicatation. With a functional medicine EHR, patient charts give back. Aside from the fact that since they’re electronic, you can update and add information without White-Out, electronic patient charts offer checks and balances. See everything on screen, get prompted for signatures where required before moving forward, and review Integrative Medicine Metrics before making determinations for the patient’s next plans.
Go Both Ways
At first, patients having access to their charts sounds like a logistical, legal, and medical nightmare, possibly out of a med school training seminar. But the integrative medicine EMR opens up that second avenue for patients, while avoiding all the potential pitfalls. Clients have access to their integrative medicine patient charts through secure patient portals. They can update information from their initial onboarding integrative patient questionnaire such as new family medical history, food allergies, sleep issues, and more, which then pings your own copy of the patient record with an alert. Patients also get to review their test results, medications, and your recommendations for their health (with no access to change any of these parts of their charts). This added accessibility can be a boon for you and your staff, who won’t have to field questions and requests around the clock.
The Song Remains the Same
Scrawling “No change” or even ticking a “No change” check box on a paper patient chart doesn’t seem like it would be a huge drain on your time, but consider how many times you do this per patient, per day, and it can add up. When you use an EMR, you can “push forward” notes in your integrative medicine patient charts. Clients who see you to maintain their health (rather than make major changes or due to illnesses) may “remain the same” on every visit for years. Take advantage of your EMR to beat the monotony and enjoy more time for the consultation.
University Supported
The top schools educating the next generation of alternative medicine practitioners aren’t exactly paper chasers. Patient charting is being covered through the George Washington University online integrative medicine program and other integrative medicine certificate programs across the country. Keep up with what’s going on in the classroom without having to go back to school.
Ready to take your patient records “off the charts?” Start with our free eBook, which explains the process of adopting an EMR from the very start. While often cited as a confusing process, you can actually implement an integrative EMR with very little stress and strain. We’ll see you at the top of the charts!
