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CUTTING REMARKS
John D. Kelly IV, MD
Help, We've Gone Electronic!
I really wish I'd taken typing in high school.
I'd had it up to my mask with the stressors of medicine: precerts, recerts, denials, paperwork hassles and the ever-present malpractice thing. Then I was blindsided by the latest: the EMR.
The pain commenced months ago when our office practice made the transition to electronic medical records. With each mouse click, I could sense my role slowly morphing from healthcare provider to scribe. I found myself spending more time looking at the computer screen than at the patient. Pardon my back, ma'am. I regularly cursed the day that I decided not to take typing in high school. After months of trying times and adaptation (and Xanax), I received notification from hospital administration that the OR was going all-electronic … ASAP. Great. Round 2 of torture! A flurry of online courses and requirements followed, including a compulsory briefing session held at 6:15 a.m. (Having fun yet?)
Then the fateful day of all-electronic surgery arrived. Our PACU was flooded with tech support folks donning pink caps and tactically positioned by computer screens. Before I could speak to my patient, I had to sign in and answer a series of prompts ranging from whether we ordered antibiotics to my patient's Zodiac sign.
CHOPPY CHARTING Electronic recordkeeping is a change that has some doctors cringing.
The fun didn't stop there. I'm now required to document that I indeed identified and performed the surgery, and to provide coding information (my favorite pastime). This is not to mention the burdens
