We launch IPads to make PTs lives easier

We are launching IPads for medical notes in our practices.  From the second that I first held an IPad, I knew it was a game changer for medical notes.

As a practice administrator I am always fighting to get “good” notes done on time.  I fully understand that from a PTs perspective doing notes is tedious work however, it is my job as the administrator to make this as easy as possible for the PT, while producing a compliant note.  Note “burn-out” is very expensive to the practice, bad notes don’t get paid, and they clog the billing process with denials and appeals (possibly adding an additional staff member to handle).

I see that the IPad as a “Game Changer” in the way providers interact with the EMR system.   I envision all providers being able to get notes done, real time, in front of the patient in a non – intrusive way.  Notes can be done on the IPad very quickly, almost at a conversational rate.  Patients are quick to adapt to the interaction of a PT talking and clicking away on the Ipad.  PTs can be “heads-up” and still complete a note.

Our practices has tested everything to make note taking easier; dictations (didn’t work as there was so much back and forth with India, Tablet PCs (too heavy and too slow), Assistants (too expensive and burn-out was high), and different software’s (long on promises and short on delivery).

At $500, I am finding that the IPads are actually cheaper than PCs, too.  A fully loaded PC always seems to end up around $1,200 – no matter the teaser price.  The maintenance on PCs is a very real expense, our practice has hired a 3^rd party computer “geek” company, is always upgrading our anti-virus software, and I frequently walk by an employee that isn’t doing anything because their computer “doesn’t work”.

I have asked a few of our PTs to post their experience with the transition to IPads.   FYI, we are buying the “cheapest” Ipads, we have Wi-Fi set up in the office and I don’t see that we need 3G.  We have been testing an external keyboard, and so far everyone likes the option of using it.

I am not in the pracitce of endorsing a product, however I am very impressed with these two EMRs, www.forcetherapeutics.com and www.WebPt.com for the high quality note that they produce in “real time” and both are IPad capable.