Nextech Systems | Associated Retinal Consultants

“The value-added aspects of EHR implementation with IntelleChart have been very real. More of each patient visit is spent taking care of the patient, and less taking care of the chart.”

– Antonio Capone, MD

Profile

Since 1971, Associated Retinal Consultants has been one of the premier retina offices in Michigan. With 17 doctors and 16 locations throughout the state, Associated Retinal Consultants is one of the largest retina practices in the United States and utilizes the latest technologies in various aspects from general eye exams to complex retina surgeries. Influenced by government mandates and the rapid growth of the practice, Associated Retinal Consultants needed a change from the limits of its paper-based system to Nextech’s robust and cloud-based IntelleChart.

Problem

Government mandates like Meaningful Use forced practice to begin EHR search in order to avoid any significant penalties
Lack of mobility negatively influenced patient wait times
Inability to share information resulted in multiple data entries

Solution

Needed EHR with capability to easily attest to Meaningful Use and receive incentives
Sought user-friendly, ophthalmology specific solution that was built to handle the size of Associated Retinal Consultants
Access to knowledgeable, timely support to reduce any disruptions across the 16 locations
Mobile EHR software so physicians to ease access of patient information from anywhere in the practice

Results

Saved thousands of dollars thanks to elimination of significant paper costs
Greater patient engagement rather than time spent looking at medical charts
Attested to Meaningful Use Stage 2
On-site implementation and personal training led to seamless rollout of IntelleChart throughout multiple locations

Physicians Find IntelleChart User-Friendly

Despite an extensive search for an EHR solution, ARC knew exactly what they wanted out of their selection.

“I think the primary goal was to find an EHR that was most user-friendly for the physicians, which is why we chose IntelleChart,” Office Administator Nancy McLaughlin explained. “Because of [IntelleChart founder Dr. Dan Montzka’s] experience and knowing the patients well, his system is obviously set up to make the process easier in terms of implementing all the information related to our type of patients. The flow of the patient records work with the patient’s visit, and obviously the information being put into the record was all very pertinent. Whereas if you look at other EHRs that aren’t ophthalmology-specific, they aren’t as user-friendly.”

IntelleChart’s Adaptive Template Technology is designed specifically for ophthalmologists, no matter the subspecialty. With the templates and list choices adapted to each specific patient’s needs or conditions, physicians at ARC – such as Dr. Antonio Capone – can operate in IntelleChart without any cumbersome or limiting workflows.

“The value-added aspects of EHR implementation with IntelleChart have been very real,” Dr. Capone said. “More of each patient visit is spent taking care of the patient, and less taking care of the chart.”

Knowledgeable Support Made IntelleChart Transition Easy

Implementing an EHR solution in a large practice like Associated Retinal Consultants isn’t always an easy undertaking, but the constant, timely support from IntelleChart simplified what could have been a stressful process.

“It was a very positive experience,” McLaughlin said about implementing IntelleChart. “We had a trainer come into the offices and do an onsite implementation. All throughout the implementation process and even now, we’ve had very good support, either from the trainers or the support help desk.”

“We’ve found the IntelleChart team to be knowledgeable and effective allies in bringing our practice up to speed with our EHR rollout,” Dr. Capone said of the support they’ve received. “Importantly, effective EHR implementation with MDI allowed us to comply with required benchmarks without negatively impacting revenue.”

No Complaints with IntelleChart

“If you talk to certain physicians, they would say they can see more patients compared to when we were on paper now that they’re more familiar with IntelleChart,” McLaughlin said. “They believe the quality of the interactions with patients are better because they’re able to evaluate and interact with the patient on a more effective level.”

As for most ophthalmology practices, attesting to Meaningful Use is an important part of ARC’s day-to-day operations. Although benchmarks for Meaningful Use are laid out in advance, there can always be some confusion on the part of the practice. Fortunately for ARC, their EHR’s responsive support team has cleared up any questions that have come up during the process.

“If we’re not performing where we need to be on certain measures, MDIntelleSys has been great about clarifying what we need to do in order to improve in those measures in order to attest,” McLaughlin said. “In that regard, MDI has made the Meaningful Use process much easier. I would highly recommend IntelleChart. I think it’s a very high quality product. Our physicians have been very satisfied with it. It’s so user-friendly and efficient from a physician perspective as well as providing good documentation of the patient care experience … I have no complaints at all about the system.”