While many healthcare organizations already have plans underway to put these systems in place, often they involve lengthy installations of complex technologies that will push the deadline to the limit. MyFax, the world’s fastest-growing Internet fax service, advises that an easy first step healthcare organizations can take today is to move from paper-based fax machines or fax servers to Internet faxing.

“Traditional fax machines don’t integrate very well with EHR systems,” said Steve Adams, VP of Marketing for Protus, the provider of MyFax. “The paper documents they produce require extra steps in order to be entered into an EHR system. Switching from a fax machine or fax server to an internet fax service is quick and easy, and will save healthcare organizations a lot of work in both the short- and long-term. It’s something they can do now to prepare themselves for 2014.”

The MyFax online portal transmits documents electronically using fax protocols (thus meeting HIPAA requirements). Faxes can also be sent and received through secure email accounts. As a result, users can integrate their fax communication and corresponding document management work flow into their EHR systems more efficiently and at a lower cost than with traditional fax servers or fax machines. Electronic documents can be easily forwarded, attached to electronic medical records and stored.

MyFax can be tied to contact management systems, eliminating the need to dial a phone number on a keypad and stand at the machine while the fax transmits. This method not only saves time, it also prevents a patient’s confidential medical information from being accidentally faxed elsewhere - which avoids another potential HIPAA violation. Faxes are received in PDF or TIFF format to ensure easier integration with EHR systems, and MyFax supports 178 different file formats when sending documents.