The U.S. population is getting older, as a surge of Baby Boomers have reached the big 6-0 and have started exploring their options for independent living and eldercare. With this demographic shift, an already cash-strapped health care industry can expect a higher volumes of patients requiring a greater degree of care. Senior care providers are also bracing themselves for the growing demand and turning increasingly to healthcare IT solutions to support their expansion while cutting costs.
According to the industry news outlet Senior Housing News, EHR software is one of the most common avenues by which these professionals are improving their quality of care. In fact, an estimated 83 percent of senior living providers who took part in a technology adoption survey conducted by LeadingAge said they had introduced digitized documents to stay on track.
"In 2014, we will see more and more of the EHRs that are deployed being used in a more meaningful way to drive quality improvement initiatives and also drive strategic positioning for long-term care and post-acute care providers," explained LeadingAge representative Majd Alwan.
Considering how much pressure the eldercare industry is facing specifically, medical practitioners of all specialties should keep an eye on this sector to identify innovations that truly produce effective time- and money-saving results. In that light, the willingness of so many senior living providers to back EHR software may be a more substantial endorsement than any press release from the Office of the National Coordinator of Health IT.
Chiropractic EHR presents an opportunity to access comprehensive medical records almost instantly, cutting down on storage space and forgoing lapses in communication between health care providers. The end result is a reduction in the time spent on administrative tasks, less space dedicated to storage and an increased ability to make the most informed decision for each patient's care.