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An electronic healthcare record or EHR is a digital version of a patient’s medical chart that a provider maintains and changes over time. Instead of relying on paper records and prescriptions, computers help record everything in a patient’s medical history while taking up much less physical space. It even allows patients and doctors to communicate more freely via email. In this blog, we’ll break down the pros and cons of switching to an electronic healthcare record.

Pro: Better care for patients

The right EHR can improve the quality of care for your patients. It does this through offering clinical decision-making tools and improved information sharing between providers. Documents in an EHR are also more accurate than paper records and can track medications and give alerts on negative drug interactions.

Con: Possibility of a cyber breach

One con of having patient data in an online database is that it can be hacked and stolen. This can also happen through a leak due to a lack of provider training or unsecured software. To help prevent this from happening, you can use a cloud-based EHR with high-security software.

Pro: Convenience

With EHR, the medical records you need for your patient are just a few keystrokes away. This speeds up processing time and allows providers to focus more on taking care of their patients, which in turn helps improve the patient’s quality of care. Patients can also use it to check their medical records to remember what prescriptions and other forms of care they should be taking.

Con: Cost of time and money

There are many EHR options to choose from, and picking just the right program for your clinic can cost lots of time through trial and error. There’s also the monetary cost of actually buying an EHR program, switching over to it from paper records, and then training your staff on how to use it effectively.

There are many factors to consider when switching to an electronic health record. You have to carefully select the right program and worry about security and cost, but it will save you time in the long run through efficiency and help you provide better care for your patients.