EMR SPECIAL SECTION
PHYSICIAN, ASSISTANT AND EMR:
A powerful combination
By Darlene Osborne
“This is my office,” says Dr. Melissa Gieni, referring to the small laptop she
pulls from her tote bag.
A general surgeon working out of the
SpesMed Specialist Medical Center in
North Battleford since 2012, Dr. Gieni
outfitted her new practice with an
EMR because she wanted to be free
of paper charts. Her office is a testament to that intention, with a large
desktop devoid of paper surrounded
by minimal shelving and storage. Rae
Hoflin, Dr. Gieni’s assistant, works in
a small cubicle with even less space
for paper and filing. She, too, is a fan
of the practice’s EMR and reports
that they’ve used only two reams of
paper since opening the office. (The
practice has a patient load of approximately 500 consults a year.)
Dr. Gieni and Rae appreciate the efficiency provided by an EMR’s mobility. The EMR allows Dr. Gieni to follow
patients, be it from the hospital or
home or on vacation. Physician and
assistant “communicate” through the
EMR, thereby reducing the number
of phone calls required to update
each other. Dr. Gieni is able to enter
her own billing from the hospital.
Lab results are released directly into
the EMR, saving Dr. Gieni a trip back
to the hospital.
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SMA NEWS DIGEST | SPRING 2014
Rae recognizes that small efficiencies
such as being able to quickly access a
patient’s chart with a few key strokes
add up to significant time savings
and better service.
She recommends that clinics embarking on EMR implementation
budget the time to learn the software so that they can better realize
the benefits and their investment.
“When a patient or referring physician’s office phones I have the information at my fingertips, instead of
having to get up from my desk, pull
a chart, return to my desk and then
replace the chart.”
As for relying on technology versus
paper charts to run the practice,
Dr. Gieni says the internet has gone
down leaving them with the temporary loss of access to their clinic data.
They cancelled a few appointments
but the experience did not deter Dr.
Gieni from using the EMR.
“I will never have
paper-based records.”
“I will never have paper-based records,” says Dr. Gieni.
-Dr. Melissa Gieni
Rae echoes the sentiment, saying
that, “After working in an EMR practice, I would never work in a clinic
that uses paper records.”
The EMR is a great asset in managing
waitlists for surgery as well as setting
up patient recalls years into the future. A completed consult letter can
be generated in a few minutes.
Dr. Gieni, Rae and the EMR make a
powerful, effective team.
Dr. Gieni and Rae realize that being a
new practice gave them the time to
build their expertise and confidence
as EMR users.
“The first few weeks were overwhelming,” recalls Dr. Gieni, “but
learning through repetition works.”
For more information about implementing an EMR, please contact
the Saskatchewan EMR Program at
1.800.667.3781.