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| Nov. 18-24, 2004 The Examiner |
| Brenda Cannon Stancil, Staff Writer |
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Typically, physicians, nurses, medical transcriptionists and hospital staff members
spend many of their waking moments recording and carefully filing information about
patients they have treated. Countless rooms have been constructed in physicians’
practices and in hospitals to hold all of this information. When the patient is separated
from his information by sudden illness while traveling or an unexpected accident, it is
virtually useless if the treating physician cannot obtain it quickly. New computer technology
is available to help every member of the medical community with this heavy workload and to see
that the patient has the very best care provided to meet his specific needs. Doctors in many
practices and hospitals are
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Dr. James Holly, founding partner and CEO of SETMA; Ike Ellison,
vice president for business development for NextGen; Pat Cline,
founder, president and CEO of NextGen.
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using handheld wireless computers that can instantly retrieve
up-to-the-minute test results, any allergies known, history of treatment and all other information
on file with a simple touch of the screen.
And, this information can be accessed by doctors from anywhere
with a password, computer and modem. Many physicians have stated publicly that these computerized
systems make care more efficient, and certainly time-saving.
In fact, Pat Cline, founder and CEO of NextGen Healthcare Information Systems Inc., a subsidiary of
Quality Systems, Inc., said that more than 20,000 providers are using the electronic
records software founded in 1996. Quality Systems, the parent company of
NextGen, has been in business for more than 25 years developing
and marketing computer-based practice management and electronic medical records
systems for medical and dental group practices.
Cline said, "The Electronic Medical Records module is designed to improve quality, reduce risk, cut costs and
increase revenues. It creates and maintains complete medical records with minimal
effort while it streamlines workflow, controls utilization, and manages critical data related
to patient care outcomes. NextGen EMR automatically creates documents and letters,
manages prescriptions and clinical images, provides patient education, and
exchanges data with other systems within, and external to, the enterprise."
Dr. James Holly, founding partner and CEO of Southeast Texas Medical Associates in
Beaumont, is an avid user and proponent of NextGen, and ably demonstrated some of
its advantages in a visit to SETMA this week. Dr. Holly said, "NextGen EMR here in
the SETMA practice delivers a variety of clinical and administrative benefits that
enhance patient productivity and give providers more time to focus on patient care. We have
found that using the computerized record keeping and management in this practice
that it allows us to see more patients without decreasing face-to-face encounter
time, provides an improved management of referral and eligibility data and optimizes
coding and improves managed care." Dr. Holly added that the program minimizes transcription
costs and reduces supply, storage and chart access costs related to the maintenance of
paper records, and increases employee productivity.
One of the most important things noted in the demonstration in the SETMA office was the improvement in the quality
of the documentation. No handwriting or quickly taken notes had to be deciphered and
placed in the file. Liability risks were reduced and the security and integrity of the
data was maintained. Seeing every part of a patient’s file quickly improves patient safety
by allowing the treating physician to see medications currently being prescribed, allergies
and past illnesses, surgical procedures and outcomes.
Should a patient become ill away from home, or distanced from his regular medical provider, his electronic medical
record can be sent upon request. Records are securely monitored for safety and privacy
issues and can only be seen with the use of password.
Dr. Holly pointed out that the physician also benefits from the electronic medical record keeping and practice
management because the doctor has access to patient information at the point of care
when he is with the patient. "It also improves outcomes through patient health tracking
and clinical alerts, and speeds responses to patients and increases the satisfaction experienced
by them.
Another feature is that the system promotes proactive care management and
increased collaboration among the provider team caring for an individual. And, it provides
diagnosis support, clinical reference information and patient education."
SETMA has been a pioneer in the use of electronic medical record keeping and practice
management and has been the recipient of several awards including the Microsoft Clinic
of the Year International, American Board of Internal Medicine Foundation - Exemplary
Practices in the U.S.A. and Physician Practice Magazine’s Southwest Regional Clinic of
the Year. Dr. Barbara Fleming, assistant to the director of the Center for Medicare and Medicaid
Services, wrote, "When we talk about systems of care, electronic records, practice
management, etc. and need a poster child, I recommend Dr. Holly. The American Medical
Association loves him, too."
Review the SETMA/NextGen case study 
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