CASE STUDY SERIES
meridianEMR's
Urology Specific EHR Boosts Revenue with Superior Coding and Cost Reduction Features
Carolina
Urology Center, P.A., Rock Hill, South Carolina, Dr. Terry Ezell
PRACTICE NEEDS
When Carolina Urology Center, P.A., a seven physician practice nested in Rock Hill, South Carolina, first started
thinking about an electronic health record (EHR) system nearly seven years ago, they were looking to improve office efficiency,
comply with government requirements, increase revenue and reduce overall costs.
The selection
process was challenging for Dr. Terry Ezell, a prostate cancer specialist for Carolina Urology Center, PA. Dr Ezell
was tasked by his colleagues the duty of selecting an EHR system for the practice. Ezell explains, "I began
investigating the various EHR companies and decided to go with meridianEMR because of their relative specificity to urology.
They had the best products for urologists and a true dedication in making the best EHR for urologists. I remember flying
to New Jersey with the primary purpose of meeting the company's management and looking them in the eye, so I could get a true
sense of their integrity and commitment to client support. After this meeting, I knew that my decision path was
clear and wanted to move forward with meridianEMR."
When the practice implemented the meridianEMR
system they never imagined the return on investment they would experience. They knew they would achieve greater efficiencies,
stronger, more organized and useful documentation, and higher quality patient care, but they get a lot more. They
found a very healthy return on their investment, in terms of real dollars and in valuable time saved.
EHR REVENUE ENHANCEMENT
Carolina Urology Center, PA experienced a smoother billing
process with the use of meridianEMR's urology specific coding templates that were designed with assistance from Dr. Ray Painter.
As noted by Dr. Ezell, meridianEMR created an EHR system for urologists by urologists.
"A
stronger coding system was a highly critical criterion for us during the selection process. By nature, physicians are
bad coders and I find that most physicians, even I, code in a defensive manner to avoid unnecessary scrutiny from auditors.
However, with the extreme coding accuracy of the templates, our practice is able to code at a higher diagnostic level with
confidence that have resulted in a direct revenue increase of over $50,000 per physician in the first year of use."
GREATER EFFICENCY AND SAVINGS
Prior to implementing the meridianEMR system,
Carolina Urology Center, PA relied heavily of its paper-based charting system that demanded several hours a day from staffers.
As Tracy Black, the practice administrator, explains, "Every day there were so many charts needing to be pulled and filed.
It amazed us how much time we had been spending handling paper charts and looking for missing charts. Once the EHR system
was up and running, we were able to completely eliminate the paper chart system in a six month period. Every physician
in the practice is using the EHR. Although initially nervous, I found that those physicians who possessed limited experience
with technology were the biggest advocates and have become pros using it."
Additionally,
physicians were no longer captive by the onerous task of note dictation. Once physicians began using the EHR, there
was no longer a need for long after visit or end-of-day dictation, as each visit was fully documented at the time of the encounter
noted, Dr. Ezell. "The practice believed in the system early. A mindset that led to rapid return on investment
both financially and in terms of user and patient satisfaction and a higher standard of care. We have completely eliminated
all the costs associated with both note dictation and paper chart management for a total annual savings of $100k per year."
THE EXTRA BENEFITS
The practice also saw less tangible, but still very important,
benefits derived from their use of the meridianEMR system and some of its unique features. One such feature is the robust
reporting capabilities within the EHR system. The physicians often search the discrete clinical data in the medical
records to identify appropriate candidates for a particular new service they are offering and then send letters to those patients.
Physicians also have to run reports in which the captured data have helped them with important research or patient outcomes
analysis.
Moving forward, the physicians at Carolina Urology Associates, PA all agree they made
the right decision with meridianEMR. Choosing the right system for them, with the comprehensive adaptable specialty
urology content was the key. Today, the practice is operating in a more efficient and effective manner, while patient
care and practice revenue increase without compromising the medical integrity and mission of the practice.
