Technology: Time, at Last, for an Upgrade?
Still using ancient practice management software? Maybe you’re ready for something new.
By Shirley Grace Douglas Blair, senior director of physician information systems at Mount Carmel Health System in central Ohio, describes its pre-upgrade practice management software as “essentially broken for us. My understanding is that it has code in it that’s over 30 years old.”
From a technology standpoint, 30 years is analogous to a geologic age. Even with regular upgrades, older systems — often running on a first-generation Unix platform — simply cannot keep pace with today’s data handling needs. Yet when Physicians Practice surveyed physicians on their technology usage last year, we discovered that practice management systems (PMS) seem to be on many offices’ IT back burners. Nearly three in 10 practices told us that their PMS is at least five years old, while 10 percent bought their systems more than a decade ago.
Is this because practices are so happy with their systems they just can’t bear to part with them? Hardly. Only one-third of the 365 responding practices report being satisfied with their PMS; six in 10 wish their system could do more than it does. (See the full results of our 2006 Technology Survey.)
So what gives? Why is this piece of medical technology lagging behind its glitzier cousin, the EMR? If you’ve waited too long to upgrade this important administrative tool, read on to discover the benefits and mechanics of doing so. Continued...
