Last week, I wrote about a conversation with a physician friend on the costs of moving to an EMR. That conversation segued into a discussion of free EMRs and how they can be a good thing for small (definitely a game changer for solo or two-practitioner) practices. This week, I’m analyzing free EMRs from the advertising angle. My friend made a comment during our discussion that gave me pause. He said he didn’t want advertisements distracting him when he was talking to a patient, he’d rather spring for a package that charged him a few dollars a month than one that had ads embedded inside it.

I think the ad question is pertinent to both sides of the equation. As a physician, I don’t want the 15 minutes I spend per patient cut down even more, because I want to get rid of those pesky pharmaceutical ads. As a patient, I don’t want to get the feeling that I’m the third wheel in the space between my doctor and his iPad.

And frankly, the low or no-cost, high volume Walmart strategy doesn’t make much sense to me in the long term. This is not based on some well-pedigreed consumer behavior study but what I’ve generally witnessed, or done myself. I’ve trained myself on the art of selective blocking. When I’m on Google, I studiously avoid looking at the highlighted links on the right, and top of the page. The same way, on eBay, when I’m looking for job opps, I generally skim past the purple highlighted vendors. If you’re a TV junkie, think about when you take your bathroom breaks.

In other words, we all have our own blocking strategies to ignore ads, which is probably not such good news for advertisers. This is not to say that advertisers won’t advertise, or vendors won’t make money.

If doctors already have some amount of natural reticence to ads, how are free EMR vendors going to make money? (I’m not sure if the ad model in free EMR packages is click/pageview driven, or a set price for simply being placed on the page, like magazine ads.) Free EMR vendors might then also offer ad-free versions, for additional dollars a month. At this point, they become just like other EMRs – i.e. when the costs are non-zero, price will not be the only differentiating factor when you’re judging EMR quality.

And yet, if my friend spends $100 a month for an ad-free EMR, as one vendor is offering, he’ll spend only $1200 a year personally for EMR, and be able to avail his Medicare 44K, as opposed to the 80K-100K EMR bids he’s currently getting. Even when ads (or lack of them) are factored out of the EMR pricing, the ad-removal-for-a-price model tends to work better for smaller practices.

Based on this, I feel like we’re going to see some steep discounting in EMR prices.

Earlier this Summer, I came across news that Greenway Medical Technologies – a developer of electronic health records (EHRs) and practice management and interoperability healthcare IT solutions located just outside of Atlanta – had taken to endorsing pro golfer Jason Dufner. It came as no surprise to me that a healthcare IT company was seeking to increase its profile among the general public. There has been a noticeable shift in increasing the public’s awareness of the impact of healthcare IT solutions on the patient care they will one day inevitably receive. It’s been a smart move on the part of providers and vendors alike to acquaint people with the technology that our government has spent so much time and energy on promoting. I was surprised, however, that Greenway Medical had chosen the celebrity endorsement route. (Golf wasn’t surprising, though. Greenway Medical’s CEO goes by the name of Tee Green.) How much increased visibility, not to mention interest, could a spokesperson bring while swinging a club on the fairway?

His first sponsorship outing at the British Open garnered little fanfare, as Dufner didn’t advance very far. Greenway Medical’s luck changed, however, as Dufner’s skill – and Tiger Woods’ ultimate absence – led him to place second at the PGA Championship last week. Held in Atlanta, the event offered a good excuse for my some of my colleagues at Billian’s HealthDATA, Porter Research and HITR.com to take a field trip to the Atlanta Athletic Club, where I suspect much of the local healthcare industry put in appearances over the tournament’s several days.

I’d have to agree with the Steve Campbell at EMRDailyNews.com, who offered congratulations to Dufner in a recent post “for a wonderful performance at the PGA and to whoever at Greenway made the decision to sponsor Mr. Dufner. The return on investment for that sponsorship just turned very positive.”

I’d also have to agree with one of the post’s commentators that “[r]egardless of his finish, Dufner and Greenway’s [credibility] rocketed this weekend with all of the primetime PGA coverage. Hours of it. And both Dufner and Greenway are classy and humble, in victory and defeat. Bottom line: EHR industry was another winner this weekend simply based on these associations.”

Perhaps Greg Fulton, Public and Media Relations Manager at Greenway Medical, puts it best: “Our main motivation was we felt it was time to continue to bring recognition to the entire health IT industry, now that initiatives like meaningful use are proving to be successful, and we have industry partners who have had good experiences being involved with the PGA TOUR.

“With Jason, we felt like we were partnering with a person first, a golfer second. He really does believe in the goals of innovative and sustainable care coordination that EHRs and healthcare IT can bring. He set up a foundation in his home state of Alabama following the tornado damage there to help people needing ongoing health services, for example.”

When I asked if Greenway Medical would consider entering into other celebrity endorsement deals sometime in the near future, Fulton explained the company’s celebrity strategy a bit further: “At HIMSS10 [in Atlanta], we did have Atlanta radio station deejay Melissa Carter, then of Q100, speak at a Greenway reception to her definite need for EHR data exchange and automated referrals, because she is a kidney transplant patient who needs that constant care coordination. And that’s what would make sense for what type, you ask, of celebrity or sports partnerships to undertake – ones that have a foundation in or can bring industry recognition and tell the story of the advancement of healthcare.”

Is it any wonder that Greenway Medical just announced its customers have secured more than $1 million in Meaningful Use incentives? How many more providers – many of whom are, it’s safe to say, avid golfers – are now aware of the company and will soon look into its products?

I’ll be interested to see what sort of healthcare IT celebrity endorsement pops up next, and where. NASCAR seems a likely candidate. I wonder if Danica Patrick has a coordinated care story to tell?

As I like to do every couple months, I like to make mention of some of the new advertisers to EMR and EHR and recognize the previous advertisers that continue to renew. Plus, there have been some interesting changes to advertising on EMR and EHR that are worth highlighting.

The HealthcareScene.com blog network is now 14 blogs strong and EMR and EHR is one of the pillars of the network. EMR and EHR has seen some great growth and recorded its best month ever last month. Woot! Thanks to all of you for reading and participating in the comments as well.

In order to handle the growth of EMR and EHR and the Healthcare Scene Blog network in general, I decided to modify how I handled advertising on the site and start rotating all of the ads on EMR and EHR. That way there would be equal exposure for all advertisers on the site including new advertisers. It would also keep the site fresh for readers. Plus, as part of the change, I implemented an ad server to deliver the ads on the site.

The ad server is really exciting, because it will open up a lot of new options like geo-targeted ads (which many people have wanted) and also possibly delivering ads on a CPC (click) or CPM (impression) basis instead of the flat monthly rate that we do now. That will allow advertisers to work with a more limited budget if they can’t pay the full monthly rate. Not to mention, the ad server will be able to provide advertisers more details stats on their EMR and healthcare IT ad campaigns.

If you have more questions about the changes and EMR and EHR advertising options, you can ask on the EMR and EHR contact us page.

Now on to the new EMR and EHR online advertisers.

Quest-Medplus-Care360 EHR – I’m really excited to have Care360 as an advertiser on EMR and EHR. I’ve written quite a few times about the Care360 EHR by Quest (yes, the big lab company). I find their model and approach really interesting for an EHR company. Plus, I know they are really focused in their EHR marketing efforts and so I’m glad that they saw value in advertising on EMR and EHR. If you’re a Quest customer already, it’s really a simple decision to check out the Care360 EHR. You already have a login, they just have to activate the EHR portion. All the SaaS EHR fans out there will love their completely web based approach as well.

Amazing Charts – I love the story of how Amazing Charts became an advertiser, but I’ll save that for another time. Started by a Family Practice Physician in 2001, they’ve been around for quite a while. I’ve heard many people comment on Amazing Charts being one of the most affordable EHR software out there. Plus, with their Free EHR trial it’s easy for doctors to try it out and see if it fits with their EHR needs.

A big thanks to the slew of advertisers that renewed their ad on EMR and EHR. It’s always an honor when they say they want to renew. Thanks Practice Fusion, MxSecure, Mitochon Systems, Nuesoft, Medical Web Experts, and SequelMed.

Tomorrow I have plans to start a new EMR and EHR series. I think it’s a series that many of you are going to really enjoy!

Excuse our regular programming for these important messages from our sponsors. Ok, not really messages from our sponsors. Just a big Thank You to all the EMR and EHR advertisers.

It’s fun for me to look back at the origins of EMRandEHR.com. I use to call it my “throw away” blog. Now, it’s turned into a really great place for discussing EMR and EHR. Not to mention the hot topics of meaningful use and iPad EMR (2 of the top search engine referrals for this site). Now I have a new throw away EMR site. I’m really proud of the EMR and EHR readership and the discussion that happens in the comments. Not to mention the great addition of Katherine Rourke as a regular writer. She provides some unique perspectives.

Now, on to the important stuff. Check out these new EMR and EHR advertisers since I last posted in December:
DrChrono – An EMR built from the ground up for the iPad and includes medical speech to text built in. They offer features like eRx, Paperless Medical Billing, Speech-to-Text, Customizable Note interfaces, and drug-drug interaction. Drchrono offers a freemium pricing model. So, you can go and download their free version to your iPad and try it out. I’m still trying to convince them to send me an iPad so I can try it out. Sadly, my hopes of winning an iPad at HIMSS were shattered. One day I’ll get my hands on an iPad and try these and other EMR software out. Until then, check DrChrono out and let me know what you think in the comments.

Nuesoft – I always have strong emotions when I see the name Nuesoft. About 6 years ago I took a trip to Nuesoft’s Atlanta office and was trained in EMR. I was a tech person with no healthcare knowledge, but the people at Nuesoft helped me get up to speed. Enough about my experience. Nuesoft offers a SaaS EHR software along with a medical billing service called Nuetopia. They also create great videos. Here’s one video they just created about Reworking Claims Submission Workflow to Maximize Revenue.

Records Management, LTD – One major issue with any new EMR implementation is what to do with all of the old paper files. Records Management Ltd offer complete records management solutions for medical practices dealing with this issue. They image and index your files with a state-of-the art technology and then secure them both physically and digitally. I also love that they had a service to handle retiring physicians records as well. I hadn’t ever thought about that need.

Medical Web Experts – I’m really happy to have John Deutsch and his team at Medical Web Experts advertising on EMR and EHR. He was my first ever advertiser. Among a number of marketing services that he offers, Medical Web Experts is putting in a lot of work in the patient portal space. They have a real focus on the customer (doctors and patients) that I like and I’m interested to see their product develop.

Also, a big thanks to advertisers that have renewed their ad: Practice Fusion, Ambir, Sfax, MxSecure, MDCare EMR, Enterprise Software Deployment, and Mitochon Systems. Ok, that’s pretty much everyone renewing. Thanks to those advertisers that support what we do.

For those interested in details of advertising, check out the EMR and EHR advertising page or drop me a note on the Contact Us page and I can send you the full HealthcareScene.com media kit.

I’d been meaning to do a post thanking all of the wonderful advertisers on EMR and EHR for a while now. I knew it had been a while. I checked today and I hadn’t really thanked my advertisers on this site since February just before HIMSS. How ironic that just yesterday I purchased my plane ticket and hotel for HIMSS in Orlando (BTW, I hope to meet many of you at HIMSS).

It seems fitting then on this Christmas Eve to thank all of my EMR and EHR advertisers for making 2010 a wonderful year for the site. In that regard, I’ll go through each advertiser and add a few comments about each. Feel free to click through to the following EMR and HIPAA sponsors and take a look at what they have to offer. They do after all keep the lights on here at EMR and EHR.

MD-IT – MD-IT has been an advertiser for a good while on both this site and EMR and EHR. I also had a great chance to meet Robin from MD-IT at HIMSS last year and it was a real pleasure. She’s a dynamic individual with a fantastic energy about her. I think that’s also reflected in MD-IT the company. Take a look at their EMR offering (especially if you’re a doctor who wants to still use transcription with their EMR).

Practice Fusion – The first Free EMR that I found. I’ve often called them the most Web 2.0 EMR company that I found. I say that from a technology perspective, but also from a company culture and marketing approach as well. It’s pretty much a no brainer decision to try out Practice Fusion if you’re looking at EMR software (or see my Practice Fusion EMR review). It’s free to sign up and you can test drive the product all you want. The best way to truly demo an EMR software is to use it.

Ambir – Ambir has a bunch of scanner solutions for healthcare. For some reason, they’re one of the only health care IT device companies that’s advertised on EMR and EHR. Not sure exactly why, because Ambir’s been advertising on here and EMR and HIPAA for a long time. Check out their duplex professional grade ID card scanner. Perfect for front desk scanning. If you’ve ever used a cheap scanner, you know why you need one that’s professional grade. Otherwise, you’ll be buying a new one a few months later.

Sfax – I’ve been happy to have Sfax advertising on both of my EMR sites for a long time. I recently did a review of Sfax’s secure fax service. Let’s just say that I was really pleasantly surprised by Sfax’s secure fax implementation. As I said in that post, “If I was an EMR vendor and didn’t have an integrated faxing service yet, I’d be on the phone to Sfax to talk about leveraging their API so I could worry about other EMR features.”

MxSecure – Another long term advertiser on both EMR sites. MxSecure has a nice transcription business, but has also launched an EMR software for small practices. Obviously, with a transcription background, they work to integrate EMR, Transcription and Speech Recognition into the EMR experience.

MDCare – An ONC-ATCB 2011-2012 EMR vendor that is handwriting enabled. They’re a web based EMR which many of my readers really like. They’re surescripts certified as well. They offer practice specific customizations for an affordable price. Plus, the feature that I like most is that you can try it for free. Nothing like a hands on test drive.

SOAPware – One of the oldest EMR software that I know of. They’ve been doing EMR software for a long time. This year they finally added a true integrated PM software to their EMR offering. A smart move since almost every practice wants the PMS and EMR from one company (one neck to ring). Dr. Randall Oates that started SOAPware is one of the most sincere and thoughtful individuals I’ve met in the EMR world. It’s no wonder that SOAPware has done so well.

Enterprise Software Deployment (ESD) – ESD is an EHR consulting company. Over 90% of their consultants come from a clinical background. The other 10% have IT experience in healthcare settings with Allscripts, Cerner, Eclipsys, Epic, McKesson, Meditech and Seimens EHR systems. So, if you’re looking for some consulting help, take a look at what they have to offer. Not to mention if you have experience with these systems and are looking for a job, check out their website for the EMR job opportunities they have available.

Thanks to all of these advertisers. It’s amazing to go through the list and see how many of the advertisers have been advertising for so long. Makes me feel good to know that they’ve seen value from advertising and continue to renew their ads.

If you’re interested in advertising, you can find more details on our EMR and EHR advertising page. You can also check out similar advertising opportunities on our EMR and HIPAA advertising page.

Thanks to all!! I hope everyone is enjoying this Holiday season!

I’m seriously ramping up for HIMSS right now. Today I sifted through 200+ emails from PR people about HIMSS. I filtered that down to about the 15 best companies that would be of interest to readers of this site. Add that to my existing connections and get ready for the fire hose of HIMSS coverage on this blog. Between this site and my other site, EMR and HIPAA, you’ll hopefully feel almost like you’re there with me. I will try to save some for the few weeks after HIMSS as well.

HIMSS aside, I’m also happy to welcome 2 new advertisers to EMR and EHR. Check them out and see what they have to offer:

Ambir – A company providing high quality scanners to healthcare. They’ll be at HIMSS in booth #9023. I’m planning to stop by and shoot some video of their products. If you have an EMR, you know how important your scanner is to your office. if you don’t yet have an EMR, you’ll quickly learn the benefits of a great scanner when you implement.

1st Providers Choice – They’re offering a free trial of their EMR software. Plus, free on-line training is also available. In other words, you can install their EMR and try it, get professional training and decide whether you like it FREE of charge! I love EMR vendors that let you test drive their software like this.

I always appreciate these advertisers support. You can find more information on advertising on EMR and EHR here.

Also, tonight I’m hoping to start selling me EMR selection e-Book. I’m really interested to hear people’s feedback on it.

I’m really happy to welcome the first advertisers to EMR and EHR. We’ve been going through a lot of growth on this website and I expect this trend will continue and each of these advertisers will benefit by hopping on board early. My goal (as with any advertiser) is to make sure they’re getting a great deal with incredibly low CPM rates. So far so good.

The inaugural EMR and EHR advertisers are:
MD-IT – A medical documentation company that’s doing some really creative things with transcription data tagging and health information exchanges.
Medscribbler – A tablet centric EMR who’s obsessed with using the latest technology to make doctor’s workflows simple and easy to use.
Sfax – Secure faxing is the future of faxing. Sfax is an outsourced faxing service with all the security, logging and money savings you’ll want from a hosted fax service.

Glad to have the support of these advertisers. Those interested in advertising can check out our EMR and EHR advertising page for more details. Now’s a good time to start as an advertiser since prices are low.