Three Reasons EHRs Can't Scale Care Management

Electronic Health Records, or EHRs, have revolutionized how healthcare providers document patient information, but they fall short when it comes to scaling care management.  In this video, we examine three reasons why EHRs lack the capabilities care management software can offer.  

EHRs were initially built for billing and documentation, rather than for managing complex care coordination and patient-centered care planning that is required for care management programs like Chronic Care Management. Here at ThoroughCare, we’ve had clients say their EHR can’t fulfill the role that dedicated care management software can.

Where EHRs Lack in Scaling Care Management

Interoperability

One of the main reasons EHRs can’t scale care management is due to interoperability.

Most EHRs offer little to no interoperability with other EHRs or healthcare systems.  This can reduce the quality of care by limiting the collaboration between healthcare providers treating the patient.

For example, if a PCP, behavioral health provider, and a hospital want to collaborate on improving a particular type of care within their community, and they do not share the same EHR, it can become administratively difficult to share data and collaborate on care.

Care management software resolves the issue of interoperability by allowing the sharing of patient data and information across various EHRs.  Data sharing improves collaboration among providers by keeping the entire care team involved in the patient’s care. This prevents miscommunications, medical errors, and duplication of work.

Usability and Workflows

The second reason EHRs fail to scale care management is due to their usability and workflows.  The user interface of EHRs can often require extensive manual input from care managers. They also usually have limited sorting and filtering features. 

Additionally, EHRs only allow for individual patient queries and require substantial manual compilation of patient information.  This can make a care manager's job significantly more time intensive and potentially reduce the quality of care given to the patient.

Care management software has the ability to prioritize care management tasks and automate things like care plan creation. Intuitive software makes patient information easily accessible and gives you the ability to add updates across your patient population quickly. 

Additional Features

The third reason EHRs fail to compare is due to additional features available within care management software.  

Some EHRs do have their own built-in care management software tools, but they are usually limited in functionality and features. These limitations can increase the staff time needed to manage patient care, potentially open your practice up to audits, and worsen the coordination of care provided to patients.

Care management software alleviates this issue by giving providers an extensive set of tools and features to appropriately and efficiently manage patient care. These tools can help with tasks such as care plan creation, appointment scheduling, data monitoring, and more.

EHRs fail to present data in a way that reveals insights, aids in diagnostics, or even allows for collaboration between a patient’s care team.  That collaboration can be a crucial part of a patient’s care, as the care management software can make it easier for doctors, nurses, and other clinicians to review and make critical decisions.

If you’re a provider and participating in Medicare’s care management programs, we strongly recommend using a quality software solution.