Although the terms EHR and EMR are being used interchangeably on frequent occasions, they both vary greatly.
While an Electronic Health Record (EHR) is the record consisting of health information in the digital format, Electronic Medical Record (EMR) happens to be the digital version of the chart having patient information that is stored on a computer.
How Does the EMR Differ from the EHR?
EHR is a digital record comprising health information - EMR is the digital version of charts
EHRs allow sharing patients' health information anywhere - Patient information in EMRs normally do not travel out of the medical practice
EHRs enable convenient access to and streamlined sharing of real-time, updated information -s EMRs are not created in such as way as to be shared with others outside the practices
EHR offers providers access to reliable tools that facilitate decision-making - EMR is normally used for diagnosis and treatment by providers
Definition of Electronic Health Record (EHR)
EHRs are the modern way of managing patient health information in the digital form. In addition to all information that is found in paper charts, EHRs consists of a lot of more useful and relevant medical information. A few of such information are patient's past health record, progress notes, vital signs, diagnoses, medications, allergies and immunization details, and lab and imaging reports. Moreover, they may contain demographic data, insurance information, and when required, patient data imported from other systems.
Definition of Electronic Medical Record (EMR)
Electronic Medical Record (EMR) indicates all that is found in paper charts - such as health record, medications, diagnoses, allergies and immunization data, and other information. EMRs prove to be effective within any medical practice, since they don't offer themselves to be easily shared externally, they have their limitations. Frequently, it becomes necessary to print out patients' medical data for mailing to other providers.
EHR Vs EMR - trends in use
The terms EHR and EMR are being used commonly, but 'EHR' is the one that is being more frequently referenced in the modern healthcare industry. Not without reasons. The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information (ONC) as well as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) prefer the term 'EHR.'
Both the CMS as well as the ONC make use of the term "EHR" and 'electronic health records' exclusively. Their reasoning is that the word 'health' encompasses more when compared to the term 'medical'. While the word medical records indicates the clinicians records toward diagnosis and treatment, the term 'Health Records' denotes more broadly the things - anything that is related to the human body's condition. It may be noted h ere that the term 'personal health record is the one wherein an individual's health records are managed directly by the individual.
EHR Vs EMR: THE Benefits
Patients' health data in digital records (EHR) system enables adding tools for information management that helps providers in delivering better care to patients. This is because of the improved efficiency, ability to better organizing, analyzing, reacting, and interpreting critical data facilitated by the EHRs.
It is possible to provide clinical reminder alerts through EHRs and connect with other specialists and experts for getting care decision assistance and analyzing data for research and care management. With interactive EHRs, users may be prompted for more additional data - this helps in collecting more and useful data as well as enhancing the completeness of data.
EHRs prove to be the future health record management tools as they furnish critical patient information that supports clinical decision making and coordinating care among different providers in the healthcare setting.
EHR Software focuses on the overall health of patients. They are designed for reaching out beyond the medical practice that originally gathers and compiles patient information. They are capable of sharing health information among various specialists and technicians such as labs and imaging centers. They are enriched with information from all of the medical professionals who are involved in the care of patients.
Information moves with the patients - to any hospital, specialist, to other state or even other nations. The EHR system having been designed to be easily accessed by anyone associated with the patient's care provides anywhere and anytime access to critical information.
Exclusive Features of EHR Makes it more Useful
Not just the vital data that it contains, the way of sharing that it facilitates as well is the reason behind EHRs being considered crucial in the modern healthcare industry. EHRs are also required for meeting Meaningful Use and other contemporary industry standards and regulatory needs.
Benefits of the EHR over the EMR
Everything that is normally in a paper chart can be included in an EHR - problem lists, medication lists, lab and imaging reports
Access to evidence-based tools in EHRs enables clinical decision making. EMR features warn about medication reactions, help in arriving at diagnoses, and assist in evaluating treatment options.
Electronic connectivity and communication facilitated by EHRs enables clinicians to stay connected with patients, other medical professionals, and insurers in a secure way.
Administrative processes are rendered smooth by using EHRs.
Although the idea of EHRs and EMRs has been around since long, Meaningful Use and other requirements have seen to the wide-spread use of EHRs and EMRs in the modern world.