5 Ways EHRs Are Making Providers Better at Diagnosing Patients

According to the stats, due to inaccuracy in diagnosis, an overestimated 40,000 to 80,000 deaths occur in the United States. Transitioning to EHR (Electronic Medical Records) helps in better diagnostic accuracy ultimately reducing mortality rates, leading to better health care quality.

Physicians accessing the EHR system were able to provide more accuracy in patient diagnosis. From providing access to complete patient information and clinical decision-support tools to significantly reducing medical errors and real-time health data, it benefits the providers to make more accurate inpatient diagnoses.

This blog post will walk you through the 5 ways in How EHR systems aid providers in making better patient diagnoses and aid in faster decision-making.

What is an EHR system and Why is it Important for Healthcare Practice?

Electronic Health Records (EHR) is a digitalized workflow of traditional methods. EHR systems help manage all patient health records in an interconnected database to make it easier for all providers to have access to complete patient records. 

For instance, lab results, radiology imaging like x-rays, demographics, allergies, medications, and other patient details.

Providers and staff members have access to patient health information ensuring more coordinated care for patients. EHR systems have become vital for today’s healthcare industry.

• EHRs provide more accurate and up-to-date patient information
• Allows providers to have complete and right-away access to health records
• Automate the provider’s and staff member’s workflow
• Helps in better decision-making and ensures patient safety
• Encourage healthcare providers and staff members to provide coordinated care

Related: EHR Adoption in Ambulatory Care: Benefits, Challenges, and Best Practices

5 Ways EHRs are Helping Providers to Make Accuracy in Diagnosis

Here are 5 ways the EHR system helps healthcare providers make more accurate diagnostic decisions.

1. Give Access to Complete Patient Histories

The ideal capability of an EHR system is that it’ll give complete access to patients’ up-to-date medical histories. For instance, previous medical conditions, medications, imaging results, specialist notes, and more. 

Giving complete access to patient histories gives a more inclusive view of the patient to aid diagnosis. For example, knowing a patient had similar symptoms years earlier that were diagnosed with a kidney infection helps recognize the problem sooner.

According to a study, 94% of providers report that EHR systems enable ready-to-access patient records available at any point in patient care.

2. Alerting and Sending Reminders

EHRs have an in-built automated alerting and sending reminders feature that helps providers intervene at any point if abnormal activities occur.

For instance, if a patient’s vital signs are dropping significantly, the EHR system will alert the providers for timely intervention to provide care. In this way, providers can efficiently follow up with patients and catch up with any potential issues.

3. Access Imaging and Test Results

Another ideal capability of EHR systems is that it provides access to imaging and test results for patients. There are times when providers have to wait a few days to receive lab results from outside lab and radiology centers, which may delay healthcare service delivery.

Switching to an EHR system that allows providers to have complete access to patients’ imaging and test results right away avoids the need to wait. 

The lab and radiology center can upload the test results and imaging straight away to the EHR system which can be accessed by the provider. This real-time access allows providers to do faster diagnosis and treatment planning.

4. Decision Support Tools

EHR systems have in-built decision support tools that help providers make more informed decision-making in diagnosis.

What are Decision Support Tools?

It’s a tool in the EHR system that aids providers during patient diagnosis by providing decision trees, support diagnosis, predictive algorithms, evidence-based diagnostic guidelines, and reference information.

Related: The Ultimate Guide: Clinical Decision Support & Patient Outcomes

If a provider is unsure if the symptoms match a particular health condition, utilize Clinical Support Tools that guide patients regarding the diagnosis. In this way, providers can avoid cognitive biases and consider alternative diagnoses.

5. Population Health Insights

The major capability of the EHR system is that it helps to analyze the patient population, allowing healthcare providers to spot trends and patterns. 

This can efficiently identify risk factors for early signs of an outbreak. For instance, noticing any flu-like symptoms reported by a patient in the rural community can aid in helping with early testing and providing diagnosis for prevention.

Why Is Using EHR for Diagnostic Accuracy Beneficial?

Utilizing EHR for diagnostic accuracy offers a vast range of benefits for healthcare providers. By providing a complete overview of a patient’s health information like past diagnosis, allergies, and medications, EHRs empower providers to make more informed decisions and make more accurate diagnoses.

1. Timely Diagnosis

EHRs streamline access to up-to-date patients’ medical records. This allows healthcare providers to analyze trends, identify potential red flags, and order necessary tests promptly.

In this way, providers can significantly reduce delays in patient diagnosis, leading to faster diagnoses and quicker intervention, especially for patients with critical illness.

2. Reducing Medical Errors

EHR systems help to decrease the high risk of medical errors by:

• Alerting Providers to Allergies and Drug Interactions
• Providing clinical decision support tools
• Facilitating seamless communication between healthcare team members

These features ultimately lead to improved medication safety and reduce the chances of wrong diagnoses caused by incomplete information.

3. Informed Decision Making

EHR systems act as a “Hub of patient records” for patient data, giving the providers an inclusive view of patient health data. This includes patients’ up-to-date medical history, lab results, imaging reports, medication lists, and more. 

The EHR system empowers providers to make more informed decisions by providing a complete overview of patients’ health records and information, leading to personalized treatment plans and improved patient outcomes.

4. Improved Research and Development

Vast amounts of anonymous patient health data are stored in the EHR system and serve as an invaluable resource for research and development. This data can be utilized for:

• Identify trends and patterns in disease progression
• Develop new diagnostic tools and treatment strategies
• Evaluate the effectiveness of existing treatment

EHRs play a crucial role in elevating healthcare for future generations by contributing to medical advancements.

Vozo All-In-One EHR Software

More than just enhancing diagnostic accuracy, the EHR system benefits healthcare practice in so many ways.

From managing and organizing patient health records digitally to reducing medical errors, it significantly empowers providers to improve healthcare quality. 

If you are searching for the best EHR system for your healthcare practice, Vozo EHR can be your go-to choice. Our comprehensive EHR solution lets you focus more on patient care while carrying all the burdens and simplifying it.

• Vozo Cloud EHR’s cost-effective cloud subscription benefits all levels of practice.
• Our feature-rich EHR helps you rectify mistakes efficiently and speed up the process.
• Vozo Specialty EHR resonates with specialty practice needs and requirements.
• Our expert technical team got you covered 24/7 if any needs arise.
• Our EHR System continues to scale as your healthcare practice grows to improve the user experience.

The Vozo Customized EHR solution benefits your healthcare practice, streamlines the administrative process, improves efficiency in workflow, reduces proneness to errors, manages all the patient’s records in one place, etc offers greater efficiency and cost-savings across the board.

Our specialty-specific tools like scheduling, patient portals, lab integration, cloud hosting, and more meet the specific needs and requirements of your healthcare practice.

“Embrace Vozo EHR to Reduce Your Burdens and Enhance Patient Care”