Finding the Right Custom EHR Development Partner: A Guide for Medical Practices

The adoption rate of EHR systems in healthcare practices have been as high as 90% for office-based physicians, as suggested by many studies. However, the same studies that show the high efficiency and adoption rate of EHR software, it also suggests that despite the lucrative benefits of custom EHR systems for medical practices, healthcare professionals are unhappy with these EHR software solutions. 

That is the reason in an article titled – Why Healthcare Professionals are Unhappy With Off-the-Shelf EMR and EHR Software – showcased the failure of generic medical practice software development and their inclination towards custom EHR development and EHR system customization.

While the article addresses the rising trend of custom EHR software, it also depicts the rising vendor related problems that medical practices face. This clearly highlights the importance of a robust healthcare IT solution, custom EHR software and a good development partner.

However, being someone who is heavily invested in patient care and the intricacies, it is natural that they know little to no knowledge about the healthcare IT solutions. That brings me to the main question I wanted to ask before starting to write this article, is the question of how to find a reliable custom EHR developer?

Well, worry not, we’ve got your covered for finding the right vendor for custom EHR solutions for small medical practices.

You’ve clicked on the right article. Let this blog post be the guide to evaluating custom EHR development companies and selecting a custom EHR vendor for your practice.

Essential Qualities of a Custom EHR Development Partner

There are some skills that you need to check for before moving forward with the custom EHR development partner that you’ve chosen. Here are some of the qualities that you should consider when choosing a partner, especially a custom EMR software development partner.

• Industry Expertise & Experience in Healthcare

Since the field of information and technology is spreading its wide arms in every possible direction, you need someone who has developed a niche for the healthcare IT industry. There are several IT professionals who over the years have developed expertise in the field of healthcare software development.

This is important because the healthcare industry is complex and requires a keen understanding of the way it works. When you cross paths with a possible EHR development partner, check for their experience and expertise in medical practice software development. For instance, ask the vendor about their portfolio and check their track records.

In addition, when conversing with them, try to connect your practice specialties to the projects handled by the vendor. Though this is a secondary aspect, having a connection between these can be a plus while selecting a custom EHR vendor, as it would be easier for both of you to work collaboratively and effectively.

• Understanding of Your Needs & Workflow

The next thing you need to understand is the understanding levels of the EHR software development partner. This is important because the software will become an integral part of your healthcare practice and if it is not addressed in the development process, then it can have a negative impact on the workflow and practice.

To ensure your needs and requirements are properly understood, you need to ensure there is clear communication established between you and the development partner.

• Strong Technical Capabilities & Security Compliance

The next thing that you need to consider is the technical capabilities of the development partner. After all, what good is an IT development partner if they’re not technically sound. Apart from that, the robust security measures that the partner takes to ensure data safety must also be checked.

Since the software is going to deal extensively with the private and important data of patients, it is important and essential for you to safeguard it and ethically use it. To ensure this in healthcare practices, there are several regulatory bodies that you need to comply with. A few compliance that you need to adhere to is HIPAA, HITECH Act, GDPR, etc. Ensuring compliance with custom EHR systems will help you easily navigate through the legal and regulatory landscape.

• Scalability & Future-proofing Considerations

Last but not least, choose a partner who can design custom EHR software that can be scaled and accommodate future growth. This is important because as your patient population grows, the software needs to handle the flow of data and other aspects carefully so as to avoid delays and inefficiencies in the process.

Check for expertise and developers available with them. This will give you an idea of whether the partner is updated on evolving technologies and regulations governing the ethical and fair use of technology.

The Selection Process: Evaluating Potential Partners

The shortlisting and evaluation process for EHR software vendors is the easy part; the hard part is the selection process. To help you with that, here are some of the things that you need to know to move ahead comfortably with the selection process and make the right choice.

• Request for Proposals (RFPs) & Project Scope Definition

Based on the needs and requirements, ask the EHR software development partner for a clear RFP. The RFP should be purely based on your requirements and consist of the desired functionalities for the development and smooth functioning of the custom EHR software.

Once you are satisfied with that, ask them to define the scope of the project. The scope should align perfectly with your needs and the partner’s capabilities to meet the requirements effectively and efficiently.

• Portfolio Review & Client References

It is natural to ask the development partner for their portfolio. This will help you gain a deeper understanding of the experience of partners with similar projects. Their portfolio will also help you clearly distinguish between their claims, offerings, and delivery.

To add another layer of assurance, you can personally reach out to the client references and gain valuable insights about their experience while working with and check if they are a reliable partner for your practice.

• Team Expertise & Communication Style

Lastly, ask for a review of the development team working on your project. Assess the team’s experience, expertise, and experience in developing healthcare technology. Here, evaluate the partner’s communication style and ability to collaborate effectively with non-technical folks while developing your software.

Beyond Development: Implementation & Ongoing Support

• Seamless Implementation & User Training

Emphasize the implementation process of the partner. Since most custom EHR software systems fail during implementation. Check and ensure that the best practices for custom EHR implementation the software system are smooth and easy to avoid any delays and complications.

After implementation, the user training program will also be smooth and easy for your staff to understand. After all the software will be custom-built it will have its unique workflow which will align with the practice. The new system, unlike most used practices, will be slightly different, and that is the reason why proper user training is important, to avoid any further compilations in the future while using or navigating through the software.

• Ongoing Maintenance & Support Services

The last thing that you must consider while choosing your development partner is ongoing maintenance and support service. The data coming and going outside the system will need maintenance and fixing every now and then. To ensure that your practice is not affected from any additional disruptions in workflow and technical errors. This will not only disrupt the workflow of the clinic but also impact patient care in the worst way possible.

Conclusion

Custom EMR development has the potential to define your practice and bring a transition from traditional healthcare practice to modern-day healthcare practices. From improving the efficiency of your healthcare professionals and staff to reducing the overall cost, it has influenced every aspect of your practice with data. However, cost considerations for custom EHR development is essential as it gives you a scope for knowing how much flexibility can be brought to your custom EHR software.

However, as important and crucial as data is for the custom EHR software and your practice, the role of the development partner is equally important. They literally have the power to change the face of your practice and influence the end user in different ways. So partner carefully and let this blog post be your guide checklist for evaluating custom EHR development partners.