December 4, 2008

Some physician group practices that are reinventing their workflows as they adopt electronic health records are concluding that wireless networks fit in well with their new approaches.

At Springfield (Ill.) Clinic, for example, doctors concluded that tablet computers were the most convenient option. "Physicians now don't see a patient unless they have their tablet; it's just like their stethoscope," says James Hewitt, CIO at the 195-physician practice.

Because physicians implementing EHRs will want easy access to clinical data from any location, wireless networks will be commonplace at clinics within five years, predicts Rosemarie Nelson, principal at MGMA Healthcare Consulting Group, Syracuse, N.Y.

"A very large percentage of doctors' offices know that this is going to be in their future," adds Margret Amatayakul, president of MargretA Consulting in Schaumburg. Ill. "It's now more a matter of when they can afford it and how easy it will be for them to make the change."

But some early adopters are experiencing growing pains. For example, Hematology Oncology Associates of Central New York in Syracuse was moving to tablets but wound up also deploying thin clients linked to a wired network. That's mainly because its wireless network's reliability proved spotty, says Michael Cretaro, CIO.

And after carefully considering implementing a wireless network to support tablets, Lakewood, Colo.-based Rocky Mountain Gastroenterology Associates rejected the option as too costly and impractical.

The decision on whether to take the wireless plunge frequently hinges on subjective factors, says Barbara Drury, president of PriCare Inc. a Lakespur, Colo.-based consulting firm. "It's driven by the form of the device that the providers choose as well as totally subjective things that have nothing to do with technology," she says.

To read the complete cover story from the December issue of Health Data Management, which focuses on wireless trends at group practices.

source: http://www.healthdatamanagement.com/news/wireless27395-1.html