North Fulton Family Medicine
Dr. James Morrow, vice president of the thirteen-physician North Fulton Family Medicine practice outside of Atlanta, Georgia, credits their electronic health record with saving his group $1 million in the first 18 months of operation—after accounting for the cost of implementation.
The EHR has given North Fulton instant access to patient records; eliminated the need for staff to locate, deliver and re-file paper records; saved time through notes that are created during the visit, rather than afterward; allowed for significant reductions in paperwork; and eliminated virtually all transcription costs. The electronic health record also has freed up office space previously used for chart storage and sharply decreased the amount of time staff spend on administrative functions.
Results
- North Fulton’s recouped transcription costs saved approximately $775,000 in the first 18 months alone.
- In the first year, they eliminated $9,337 per day and $253,978 per year in the areas of chart pulls, new patient chart generation, missing chart searches, transcription, lab result handling, referral letters, medical chart supplies.
- In total, the leadership of North Fulton concluded that the EHR saved their practice $33 per patient visit.
- North Fulton saved 44 staff hours per day of practice and 11,968 hours per year
- Although overall staff numbers have increased, there has been a proportionate reduction in non-clinical staff and an increase in revenue generating clinical providers.
***Submitted by Dr. James Morrow, Vice President, North Fulton Family Medicine practice outside Atlanta, GA
Published: January 26, 2009
