The Impact of Electronic Health Records on Client-Centred Care
The Shift to Electronic Health Records:
The care industry has seen a major transformation in the past decade, with many care providers pivoting away from using traditional methods of storing service users’ care records such as paper-based methods and using multiple integrated systems to store client information.
Instead, many providers are opting to implement an electronic health record platform to manage and store client’s information.
This shift to more advanced solutions is most evident in the United Kingdom, with the NHS initially promising to make the client record system largely paperless by 2023.
Whilst they haven’t been entirely successful in transitioning the entire client record system to a fully digital model, there has been a significant reduction of the number of care providers using traditional methods. A survey by the National Health Executive (NHE) found that the number of care providers still using paper EHRs was down to roughly 40% as of June 2023.
This transition towards a fully digital client data management system was initially facilitated by the creation of the Professional Record Standards Body (PRSB) in 2013 by the Academy of Medical Colleges.
The PRSB was tasked with developing a set of clinical standards for health and social care records that had an electronic health records platform at its core.
The PRSB are an independent, not-for-profit community interest company whose main objectives are to develop clinical standards that meet the clinical needs of service users and can be adopted by care professionals.
Understanding Electronic Health Records:
In an increasingly digitised world and with an increasing number of individuals requiring care, traditional methods of storing client data are no longer feasible, that’s where electronic health records (EHRs) come in.
EHRs combine service users’ care and treatment history with other key information such as their demographics, psychographics, and medical information including vaccinations and allergies etc.
These records can be stored digitally on a local server within a care setting, by the client data management system provider, or in a cloud-based database that can be accessed remotely at any time.
When EHRs were implemented across the care industry, they transformed the delivery of care by creating shared client records that are the primary source of information for all care professionals.
This resulted in several improvements that benefitted both the service user and the care provider such as:
- Better informed and safer clinical decision-making,
- More informed and engaged clients,
- Integration of services across care settings,
- Increased availability of information to enable proactive management of clients and their care, and
- Improved client outcomes.
How Electronic Health Records Improve Efficiency without Compromising Quality:
With EHRs being shared across different care providers, the PRSB has established a set of standards that must be present in all care records, known as the “About Me” standards. There are seven “About Me” standards that must be present in all EHRs:
- What’s important to me,
- People who are important to me,
- How I communicate and how to communicate with me,
- My wellness,
- Please do and please don’t,
- How and when to support me, and
- Also worth knowing about me.
These standards establish a clear template and structure for service user care records, significantly reducing the likelihood of errors occurring, preventing duplicate entries, improving data accuracy and streamlining processes to further improve care outcomes and increase business efficiencies.
Furthermore, EHRs are stored centrally meaning they can be accessed by any care provider directly at the point of care, regardless of the provider or the location.
For example, if a service user is receiving care from multiple carers or services and suddenly requires emergency medical treatment, the medical professional is able to access their full medical and care history directly.
By allowing providers access to more information, they are empowered to make more informed decisions regarding the care that they provide.
As the records are electronic, care staff no longer have to spend time trying to decipher their colleagues’ handwriting, reducing the likelihood of mistakes and e enabling them to spend more time doing what they do best, providing excellent care.
EHR platforms also provide vital information on the service user’s medication requirements and what has been administered to them.
This significantly reduces the chance of medication administration errors such as a client receiving a double dose of certain medications, receiving medications that will have adverse reactions with other medications administered, or a client not receiving their required medications.
EHR platforms also enable care providers to monitor the amount of medication they have on their person at any given time.
When a care provider is administering medication, they will see the total number of medications and the amount being administered. Once administered, the platform will automatically update to display the new total of available medications.
As a result, care providers no longer need to manually count their medication totals and they no longer have to memorise medication counts throughout the day, again reducing the likelihood of errors occurring and enabling them to spend more time focusing on providing an excellent standard of care.
Moreover, modern EHR platforms are integrated with the NHS database, allowing care providers instant access to all information regarding the medications they are administering.
This streamlines the process of administering new medications as care providers can see clear instructions on how to administer the medication, the dosage amounts and the effects of the medication when combined with other medications directly from the same location.
Electronic health record platforms can also provide care providers with an overview of the different appointments a client has on a day-to-day basis, enabling them to identify any areas where there may be time missing or where they have potentially double-booked a client, ultimately reducing the administrative burden they face and streamlining the scheduling process.
How Electronic Health Records Foster a More Collaborative Approach to Care:
As service users’ personal information, care history, and medical history are stored centrally within electronic health record platforms, they can be accessed by all stakeholders involved in the circle of care, including the service users themselves.
When service users have access to their care information, they are more likely to positively engage with their care which significantly improves their care outcomes.
As service users can often see multiple different providers for their different care requirements, EHR platforms ensure that care providers all have access to the same up-to-date information, improving the continuity of care provision as all care providers can access users care history, treatments, and medications all from one central location, minimising the possibility of potential errors occurring and improving care outcomes.
Furthermore, as client data management systems share information across different care services, it enables them to work together to create the most optimal care plan for the service users resulting in a higher standard of care provided and significantly improved care outcomes.
Client data management systems also reduce the number of duplicate prescriptions, treatments and tests being run they can prevent miscommunications and incomplete data as providers are required to fill out all the relevant information before they can clock out and move on to their next client.
Most modern systems also come with built-in instant messaging and notification functionality, enabling a secure and efficient means of communication between care providers, allowing them to provide instant updates to the care team and the service user’s family.
EHR platforms allow for the aggregation of client data, enabling providers to analyse trends and care outcomes and make informed decisions regarding care plans etc.
Moreover, by sharing insights and information across multiple care verticals, health and social care providers can collaborate on broader care initiatives, such as infection prevention programs or improving long-term care for service users suffering from chronic conditions.
A Digital Future for Enhanced Care Provision:
The care industry has seen major transformations in the past decade, resulting in many care providers pivoting away from traditional methods of storing service user’s care records, with client data management systems becoming the new norm as the NHS successfully digitised 60% of client record systems as of June 1st, 2023.
Electronic health records combine service user’s care and treatment history with other details such as their demographics, psychographics, and their medical information such as vaccinations and allergies.
As these records are shared with different care providers, the PRSB has established standards for service users’ care records which improve data accuracy and business efficiencies by providing a clear structured template for service users’ care records.
Electronic health record platforms come packed with functionality such as a medication cabinet and an appointment calendar, designed to streamline the provision of client-centred care and minimise the possibility of errors occurring during all stages of the client’s care.
Ready to transform your care offerings? Book a demo with OneTouch Health to see how electronic health records can streamline your care provision, increase business efficiencies, and improve service users’ care outcomes.
