Gwendolyn,
That is a great name by the way! Welsh celtic?
Is it worth the effort of going after MU?
All of my partners that have attempted stage 1, phase 1 have gotten the 18K check, 5/5 and one uses e-clinical. I have chosen not to, even stage 1, phase 1.
I am of the opinion, that from here on out, it may not be worth the effort, and one may want to invest time and effort into enhancing efficiencies in the office to overcompensate the eventual penalties.
I have chosen instead, to put a concerted effort into getting a functioning portal system going to reduce phone tag, voice mail, chatter on the phone, and postage costs.
Going after the MU and developing a portal system does not have to be mutually exclusive, but I am of the opinion, in 3-5 years small outpatient primary care practices not utilizing a portal will be in the minority, but those not participating in further MU stages will be in the majority.
To me it comes down to fulfilling patient's expectations and needs first and foremost, and enhancing office efficiency and reducing or at least maintaining overhead expenditures.
I think if one can do a cost analysis of the time and effort required for input of data to achieve MU from phase 1 stage 1 onward, and determine if those efforts actually enhance patient care and satisfaction, reduce overhead and increase production, then do it. But it will need to be determined individually for each practice.
I just looked at my analytics and 2/3 of my patients are currently utilizing a patient portal. I have said this multiple times but getting a functional portal up and running has been the single best business decision I have made in 20 years of practice.
I hope this helps, and I suspect you will get quite a few more perspectives, and this is what makes this user board a fantastic resource.
