Locked-in
This is from the AMA Morning Rounds:
Politico (9/15, Pittman) reports in “Morning eHealth” that the American Medical Association is “circulating a sign-on letter asking HHS to ‘pause’ finalizing meaningful use Stage 3 rules while the government reevaluates the EHR incentive program.” The letter states that “moving forward with MU Stage 3 at this time will severely undermine the ability of the health system to support the implementation” of this spring’s SGR-repeal legislation. Additionally, the AMA said that if the Stage 3 rules are finalized now, “vendors will create software that will lock-in problematic technology, which physicians and patients will be living with for years to come.”
Locked-in problematic technology? I have not seen that term used before but it is awesome. One could say that the whole concept of EHR/EMRs as they relate to patient care (not billing) is locked-in problematic technology.
“They suggested primary care practices establish each patient’s agenda before the appointment to help determine in advance how much time will be needed for the visit”.
The true agenda is never presented until the physician walks in the room.
EHRs are not designed with the end user in mind. It is a data collection device for insurance companies, the government, and for administrators trying to measure “Quality”.
Are we allowed to utilize Enhanced Interrogation Techniques like waterboarding to ferret out the true “agenda”? Is there a CPT code for that?
Patients are not acting like widgets, and somebody must be punished. “Quality” is defined as an eraser for the payment statement. So what’s new?
I do love my ongoing chronic overuse thumb pain from clicking, clicking, clicking just to get through the most mundane of EHR tasks. Problematic technology is just one symptom. Can hardly wait for the worsening tendonitis coming along with ICD-10.
Well, despite what happens with Stage 3 MU, the SGR repeal is not going to be much better for docs in the long run, and will continue to be tied to ridiculous documentation and “quality” schemes.
Speaking of which, you’ll love this:
http://www.aafp.org/news/practice-professional-issues/20150915workflow.html
From the above article:
“PCPs are expected to manage and treat a patient for what has happened since their last visit during a 15- to 60-minute consultation, when many times, patients are unorganized or unprepared”
Yeah, those unorganized 60 minute consultations are really a big problem for most family physicians.
What planet are these people on?
These great theorists have come up with the solution – see the patient for five minutes, and then “Send Them To The ER.” I tried to get one or two admitted directly to the hospital, and there’s a waste of time! The primary care system is just becoming a preliminary step for sending the patient to the ER. IF you want to build a “cost-no-object” system that wastes money, couldn’t beat that.
I’ve seen patients sent off to the ER on the basis of a (colleague) reading the EKG Idiot Box printing out “cannot rule out MI.” The (colleague) sends them, ‘nothing is wrong’ and they come back to me with their mild clinical hyperthyroidism. What a money-saver! NOT.