Dear Vance:
I'm a solo family doc and have been using AC for about 9 months. There are various ways to handle EMR documentation with AC. We give patient's a paper questionnaire when they come in for physicals or followups to get the history. I record the HPI myself as I'm talking with the patient. The ROS I record using a template--two keystrokes. Then based on the paper form the patient has completed I can modify the template. It's pretty quick. Some offices have their medical assistant type in the HPI info as they get and enter vital signs. Another approach is to use a system like Instant Medical History which can be integrated with AC.
Once you get your templates and systems established and get used to using the system you can document your visit pretty quickly. With AC I document much more completely than I used to do on paper and spend less time doing it. Compared to most other EMR's, AC has been designed for ease of use. This is not to say that transition from paper to bits/bites is easy!
