We all know that times are tough for small practice docs. One of our many challenges has been to implement an EMR. This is not a trivial process; it has led to a tremendous amount of emotional, intellectual, and financial stress for the medical community. One of my friends actually attributes his MI in large part to his (ultimately unsuccessful) EMR and practice management system implementation. The overwhelming majority of the physicians I know absolutely hate their EMR?s. Many of them paid a fortune for that privilege.
My situation is different. Amazing Charts is far less expensive than other EMR?s, it allows me to get my notes done, run my practice efficiently, and feel like I am doing a better job taking care of my patients. It also led me to connect (both locally and virtually) with a network of friends and like-minded individuals who share my view of how medical practice should be conducted.
I have Jon Bertman to thank for this. He developed the EMR, he decided to market, sell, and support it with his concept of ?kind capitalism?. He ran the company in a unique way. If you question that, look back at this board over the years and ask yourself what other companies would have the CEO asking for input on the EULA or pricing, or personally intervening to resolve issues for customers. Was he perfect? Of course not; he would be the first to admit his errors and faults, but give the man his due; he helped us all tremendously, and I am happy to say so and thank him publicly.
As to his departure: well, I wish he hadn?t sold the company and moved on, but that is obviously his choice and his right. He also would have been within his rights to sell the company to an Epic or Allscripts or Microsoft; he chose not to do so. That would have left us in a far worse situation. I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.
And how about we give John Squire a chance to make his own decisions and his own mark on the company, rather than making assumptions about what he will do...
