Electronic Medical Records

There has been a lot of talk in recent months about physician offices going “electronic”, but what does that mean exactly?   An Electronic Medical Record (EMR) is a secured electronic file of patient history, medical transcription notes, billing information, and all other information necessary to have a complete patient profile.  EMR systems are becoming the way of the future and its benefits are numerous.

Florida Skin Center has been a “paperless”, office since spring of 2005.   Although Dr. Badia recalls the transition from paper charts to electronic charts as a slow process, she would never go back to the old way of doing things.  Dr. Badia believes that having electronic medical records not only saves time and energy, but most importantly benefits her patients as well.  Patients of Florida Skin Center can rest assured that all of their current and past medical history is up to date. Current medication lists can easily be updated and pop up alerts made for allergies. Lab results are directly imported into each patient’s chart which reduces the risk of medical errors with filing and reduces wait time for patients, because they are not waiting for someone to find their results.  Patients can call with questions over the phone and get their questions answered right away.  They do not have to wait for a staff member to “find” their chart. 

Our patients are extremely happy as well. Each patient that is prescribed a medication goes home with an information sheet and directions on how to use the medication that are easy to interpret. Another feature of electronic medical records is patient prescriptions can be sent electronically to a pharmacy that the patient chooses. We know patients have busy schedules and appreciate the time they are saved having a prescription ready to pick up at the pharmacy. Lastly, patients can be assured that their medical information is secure. All EMR systems require unique user names that are password protected to access any patient information.

We hope this gives you a little insight into the benefits of having a physician’s office using electronic medical records.

Hope to see you soon.

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Your Skin for Life.