In a recent study of 20 healthcare workers conducted at Roudebush VA Medical Center, researchers found that pen and paper workarounds to electronic medical records (EMR) actually improved the efficiency of the work being conducted. The most frequently cited reason for the 125 incidents of paper use was efficiency and ease of use. A computer can’t be with the healthcare worker at all times, so jotted notes usually substitute until they can make it back to a terminal.

While EMR’s and their availability will no doubt make the national healthcare system more efficient in terms of reporting and improving patient care through access to records from other physicians, at a microcosmic level individual work is enhanced by pen and paper use. The most important thing is that the pen and paper workarounds are teed up later with the electronic record, as a failure to do this may lead to serious mistakes in the EMR.

One of the items labeled as useful in the study was the issuance of pink index cards to patients admitted with high blood pressure, which were then passed on to the physician. This offered an expedient visual clue as to the state of the patient and the information was later entered into their EMR.

A 10% Medicare reimbursement increase to emergency department staff, including on-call specialists who often don’t get paid for emergency care, is on the table for lawmakers.  The hope is to turn emergency care from being an underfunded community service to a center that pays fairly and well for attendant staff.

Emergency centers have seen an uptick lately in people who are trying to avoid health care costs by using emergency services due to layoffs and loss of benefits.  Emergency staff across the US are trying to keep up with the demand, according to a poll conducted by the American College of Emergency Physicians.  More than 88% of the over 1700 physicians surveyed were treating patients that were refused treatment somewhere else.  The same patients are putting off things like checkups and ongoing medical care, leading to more severe results once they do get to emergency.

The hope is that the billions of dollars saved by spending money to upgrade health records can be set aside to fund the increase.  The figure that is currently being floated is around $12 Billion in overall government savings on Medicare by the proper implementation of electronic health records.  The only question is how the savings will be spent on other areas; this remains a big question mark that health care agencies are gunning for some answers on quickly. 

More can be read in the article over at Modern Healthcare.

There has been a lot of talk in the news about the critical state of America’s emergency medicine facilities.  According to witnesses who testified before Congress this summer,  emergency departments across the country have grown so fast to meet patient needs that they are now finding themselves under-staffed and under-funded in several key areas.  If presented with a national disaster or terrorist strike, it may be difficult for some emergency facilities to handle the patient surge.

The primary reason for this sudden demand is simply that the patient view of American healthcare is changing. Rather than visiting a general practitioner for medical attention, patients find it more gratifying to visit the emergency room, have all tests done on the spot and receive treatment immediately – even if it isn’t a threatening emergency. The rising demand for emergency care can also be attributed to a national shortage in healthcare professionals and insurance payment procedures. To compensate the high demand, many facilities have begun hiring board certified family practitioners in to their emergency medicine department.

Physician recruitment agencies and physician search firms are working with hospitals and healthcare facilities nationwide to fill a variety of temporary and permanent assignments in emergency medicine.  However, as you know, sifting through hundreds of physician resumes and relying on physician recruiters to find the perfect candidate for you to interview could take months – if you’re lucky.  

So, why not take the physician recruitment process into your own hands and let eMatchPhysicians.com do the matching for you.  As a hiring organization, you simply have to complete an online profile listing all the pertinent details about your emergency medicine physician job opening and the specifications of who would be the right candidate, and you’ll receive instant matches.  Stop searching through stacks of resumes and wasting your time, and start interviewing the right match today.

eMatchPhysicians.com is proud to work with emergency departments nationwide to place qualified physicians to fill their needs.   Get started with a more effective way to fill your physician job opening,