Home Forums Discussions General Discussion AthenaClinicals EMR

Hi everyone,

Another thread made reference to this. Looks like Claudia is using this EMR.

Thoughts about it? Strengths/weaknesses compared to AC?

Not planning to abandon AC, just wondering what is out there and how good/bad it is.

Thanks

Gene

I am also interested.

Our solo practice clinic is looking into Athena. What they say and show looks really interesting and their support seems great. Would love to hear other thoughts on Athena.

I hope AC gets it figured out. A huge chunk of the negative reviews are related to support. Lots of people want to jump ship because of it. Probably get swamped with stuff that has nothing to do with AC itself. I feel their pain when we get complaints about Internet outages. But a lot of it is self inflicted with the whole install key and credentialing process.

They did start that Employee Spotlight series so I think they're starting to realize the issue.

Agree with Sandeep. AC licensing needs to be as easy as Microsoft's.

JamesNT

Hey @JamesNT - did you not get the two emails I sent you? One was on 10/7 and the other was yesterday?

I'm hoping against hope that AC gets its act together about a number of what seem to be simple fixes.
I'm using 10.1.2 -- it has been very stable.

I can't imagine Athena being any easier to use, though maybe the screens are a little fancier.
It's hard to figure out what it might cost -- they have been pretty evasive -- but I'm sure it is wAAAAy more than
$1500 per year.

Hi everyone, sorry for the radio silence but I had to prioritize getting AC back to functional before I start in on Athena.

When I contracted with this ACO two years ago, they said, "We chose Athena because it sucks the LEAST."

It has LOTS of bells and whistles that AC couldn't even think about. But it is not as intuitive, and some features are maddeningly inflexible.


LOVE:

-cloud-based
-flags pop up to prompt quality care measures
-workflow is clearly visible to everyone in the office in real-time (patient checked in > patient in room > patient ready for provider > checked out)
-separate inboxes for admin/clinical/refills/authorizations etc
-templates can be easily created, shared, and charted
-choice between pre-populated dropdown menus and free text for documentation (dropdowns are designed for optimization of documentation for coding and reimbursement)
-faxing from EHR is WAY easier than AC
-faxes are sorted AUTOMATICALLY in Athena (come in already attached to patient's record, and sorted into separate inboxes e.g. "clinicals" (consults, etc), "labs/imaging," "orders/rxs/auths"
-referrals are UNBELIEVABLY easy compared to AC
-database of providers/pharmacies/imaging facilities/labs is VERY good
-communication between everyone in the office is pretty easy, AND there is also a feature called "AthenaText" which is essentially an intranet within Athena where we can discuss admin items that don't belong in the medical records
-Virtual Visit platform is easy and wildly popular with patients
-clinical photos can be put directly on patient charts (rashes, wounds, moles) at the point of care
-all orders are matched with a diagnosis code (or several)
-labs and vitals can be viewed as a flow chart that's much more user-friendly than AC
-patient portal is way better for communicating with patients

HATE:

-letter writer is stupid and awkward in different ways than AC--but on a par!
-confusing that "orders" include: referrals, DME orders, labs, imaging orders, prescriptions
-in the end, the printed or faxed visit notes look TERRIBLE; the formatting is just dumb

LOVE/HATE:

-the administrative workflow WILL NOT proceed if you skip a step, so if someone shows up without their insurance card, we have to reschedule them...ultimately, this is a good thing for getting paid, but it makes it very difficult for front office

Let me know if you have specific questions!

What does Athena cost per year for a two-doctor practice?
What if you have part time coverage from several different locums?
Do you pay per doctor or per record or what?