When assessing go-live support for an electronic health record (EHR) implementation, there are several factors to take into consideration. Clinical EHR go-live support models tend to go 2-3 weeks while the EHR billing cycle takes far longer to touch all aspects of the system. The EHR billing cycle will span several months to cover all aspects from start to finish. An EHR billing cycle can be broken down into these three distinct areas:
When planning for EHR billing support, these questions should be considered.
It is tough to know all aspects of the EHR billing cycle in-depth. Invest time in making sure end-users and support have the workflow specific information. Not all organizations function the same, and there are some very specific workflows developed for the billing cycle. Take the time to share workflow diagrams and educate the end-users and support on these specifics to lessen the chance for errors during EHR implementation and go-live.
As you plan for support, remember that the EHR billing cycle is like a wave. It will ramp up then down in each area. Maximize on this and shift the support as one area is decreasing in need to the next area that will be ramping up. Your support will be well versed with the issues from the beginning of the process and will be better able to assist in troubleshooting the problems later on in the billing cycle.
Many other factors will play into the number and duration of support necessary to make the EHR billing cycle implementation successful. These are only a few high-level considerations.