The healthcare industry is known for its many acronyms, and two of the most common on the technology side are EHR (electronic health records) and EMR (electronic medical records). These terms are often used interchangeably, but despite the similarities, they have key differences that pertain to the management of patient records. This article draws the distinction between EHR vs EMR, and how they each benefit a patient’s health by promoting more effective care delivery.
Defining EHR vs EMR Systems
When comparing electronic health records (EHR) vs electronic medical records (EMR), defining each separately is a starting point. The following sections provide an overview of what each system does, and what it does well.
What Is an EHR?
An EHR is a digital record of a patient’s medical history that is compiled from multiple medical facilities, providers, and caregivers. Like EMRs, EHRs house laboratory and imaging results, prescription drug information, and demographic information such as allergies and immunizations. Key benefits of EHRs are:
- Enhanced patient care: EHRs provide a complete profile of a patient’s medical history, enabling healthcare providers to make informed decisions about treatment and care plans.
- Improved operational efficiency: EHRs facilitate efficient workflows in administrative tasks such as scheduling appointments, tracking insurance claims, and managing billing.
- Care coordination and portability: Multiple providers can modify or update a patient’s record in real time, ensuring that all involved have ready access to the latest information needed to direct care decisions.
- Data-driven insights: EHRs generate accurate data over time on population health and trends, enabling healthcare providers to discover new treatment methods, manage outbreaks, and much more.
What Is an EMR?
An EMR is a digital version of a paper chart that compiles patient data over time within a single practice, including clinical notes, medications, diagnosis, and treatments. EMRs are utilized primarily by clinicians to manage their patient’s immediate treatment and outcomes, and they focus on tasks such as e-prescribing, patient communication, and patient portal access. As healthcare technology continues to advance, EMRs are becoming more accessible and user-friendly. EMR benefits include:
- Streamlined record-keeping: Clinicians can record and access patient information quickly and efficiently, minimizing paperwork and manual data entry.
- Reduced manual input: Users no longer need to enter as much data into the system which cuts down on tedious tasks and room for human error.
- Quick access to patient data: EMRs enable providers to review a patient’s medical history and results in real-time, providing them with the necessary medical information to make informed decisions about the course of treatment.
- Real-time access: All authorized users can access patient records and make updates as needed in real time, providing instant updates and ready access to the latest information.
Side By Side Comparison Electronic Medical Records (EMRs) vs Electronic Health Records (EHRs)
With the attributes of each records system established, this section compares the two side by side based on key areas of clinical performance. Understanding the capabilities of each system helps healthcare administrators utilize each system appropriately.
- Scope: EMRs hold patient data within one practice, while EHRs offer a complete view of a patient’s health history across various providers. For example, a medical practice can retrieve a patient’s emergency contact information from the EMR but will need an EHR to view a total patient record.
- Data sharing: EMRs have limited sharing capability, while EHRs can be shared across authorized providers in various organizations. For example, EMRs can send lab orders to an in-house phlebotomist, but an EHR is needed to send X-ray orders to an outside radiologist.
- Functionality: EMRs support basic recordkeeping operations, while EHRs offer clinical decision support and patient portals. For example, a physician can track a patient’s medication history with an EMR but would not have automatic drug interaction alerts provided by an EHR.
- Interoperability: EMRs lack interoperability with other systems, while EHRs employ standardized formats for seamless data exchange across systems. In other words, EMRs are data silos while EHRs are designed to integrate and communicate with other systems, making more productive use of data.
- Continuity of care: EMRs can disrupt a patient’s care continuity with new providers, while EHRs facilitate seamless patient data transfer across healthcare settings. EMRs lack the portability of data housed in EHRs that equips providers to promptly send health information where it needs to be.
Advantages of Electronic Health Records over an EMR System
Looking at EMR vs EHR systems, the overarching differentiator is the aspect of the EHR’s records portability and continuity of care. Compared to a paper records system, EHRs can transmit a patient’s entire health record to a new provider quickly. Not only does this promote patient-centered care by avoiding unnecessary delays, but it also gives other providers access to critical information needed to make the best care decisions. Other areas where EHRs are notably stronger in performance are:
- Efficiency: When effectively utilized, EHRs can cut out redundant tasks, and implement automations that contribute to substantial savings of key resources – time and money.
- Engagement: EHR systems feed what patient portals need to fully function. Patient portals drive engagement by providing patients with direct access to their health information, medications management, lab results, communications with providers, self-service scheduling, and more.
- Productivity: EHRs optimized with clinical decision support (CDS) tools help providers be more efficient and precise in a workflow. Such features include real-time alerts, reminders, and evidence-based recommendations.
- Resourcefulness: Automation of tasks that can consume an entire workday such as scheduling, billing, and documentation can either redirect staff to more significant areas of the business or trim down staff size. EHRs also generate reports, track inventory, manage referrals, and integrate with IT systems to optimize patient flow and reduce errors.
- Interoperability: Integrated EHR systems work seamlessly with other healthcare IT systems, ensuring accurate and accessible data for confident decision-making, improving patient outcomes, and reducing medication errors.
- Forward thinking: EHR systems offer data-driven insights for trends, population health, and research. They analyze patient data to identify care gaps, evaluate treatment plans, and predict health risks. This aids in developing population health strategies and facilitating research studies.
Summary: EHR vs EMR
Electronic health records (EHRs) and electronic medical records (EMRs) are both secure housing systems for patient records. Understanding the distinctions regarding EHRs vs EMRs informs key decisions in operations such as whether to sunset an EMR system and consolidate records management to one EHR.
EMRs are digital versions of paper charts housed in a single medical facility, containing medical and treatment histories of patients within one practice. While EHRs are also digital versions of patients’ medical records, they are designed for interoperability and portability so that providers can receive critical information quickly from other providers. When optimized, EHRs support patient engagement through patient portals, and promote efficiency though automated tools – such as clinical decision support enhancements – and more. In short, EHRs have many capabilities that EMRs do not.
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For over two decades, Medical Advantage has helped healthcare organizations drive operations performance and improve quality of care. We understand the critical role of technology in the clinical setting, so we design our services around maximizing the value and effectiveness of EMR and EHR systems from successful implementation, to customized user training solutions. Contact us today to discuss how we can help you achieve your practice goals.
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