There isn’t a physician out there, who isn’t aware that the federal government has mandated that all physicians must have an electronic record system in place by 2014 or suffer the financial consequences. Still, many physicians are reluctant to make the switch. For some it is simple a matter of procrastination, for others it is a lack confidence in their ability to pick a good system and implement it.
To help such doctors the government has made $640 million available through its stimulus program to help establish regional extension centers. The goal of the regional extension centers is to provide guidance to small practices on how to purchase and implement an electronic medical record system.
Two such regional extension centers include the University of Texas-Health Science Center at Houston and HealthBridge has recently formed Tri-State Regional Extension Center for the Greater Cincinnati area.
Proponents see the regional extension centers as a valuable tool to help physicians convert to electronic records. Each regional extension center is a nonprofit organization staffed with consultants familiar with EMRs and small practices. A consultant will work with the physician to make sure the doctor understands the entire EMR process from selecting to implementing.
What makes the regional extension center different is the consultants merely advise the doctor on the steps to take to implement an EMR system. The REC will not choose an EMR package for the practice. It is up to the doctor to use the skills learned from the regional extension center to select a system. For those practices currently running an EMR but in need of a little guidance the regional extension center is capable of providing technical assistance.Additional services could be available depending on the REC. Some might let doctors buy into a health information exchange or offer subscriptions to the REC’s regio extension centers.
