Keeping Your EMR Implementation Project On-Track

"Why is it taking so long for you to implement electronic medical records?" I hear this question often. Although it is true that what we expected to take a year and a half actually took us twice as long, our careful approach was commended by Project Management professionals. As about half of all IT system implementation projects fail, a solid plan is critical, and must account for changes and barriers which could be encountered along the way.

Your electronic medical records (EMR) vendor can refer you to a professional that can guide you during the process of implementation. This person could be someone who knows about the EMR system, or someone experienced in implementing IT projects at medical practices. I recommend hiring a certified Project Manger.

A professional Project Manager can change your plan into a resilient process able to adapt to a series of setbacks and delays. Traditional project scheduling cannot really do much to help accomplish this. The primary benefit of using a breakdown structure is that any pop-ups that occur won't completely devastated your goal to implement the system. A solid deadline should be set as part of the EMR rollout plan, but a resilient plan structure can help your practice roll with the punches during the implementation campaign.

We hired on a Project Manager to help plan our new office location. Our staff members were able to use what they learned during the process, including use of mind-mapping software. In fact, we've used these project management skills for all big projects since that time, including successful implementation of EMR. Finally arriving at a place when our employees were trained, we posted our fixed deadline to go live. We held a simulation day on the weekend, two days before the actual launch date. Although we would have been able to push the launch date back further in a pinch, the fixed date kept us working together toward a goal that was commonly understood.

By the way, do you want to learn more about implementing EMR in your own practice? Download my free report "Getting Through The EMR Maze."

Click here for the free EMR report.

Do you want to learn more about increasing revenue and cutting costs in your practice? Download my free report "The 7 Key Strategies To Building A Successful Medical Practice Even In Tough Economic Times."