New Interactive Portal Educates Physicians, Staff about EHRs & Meaningful Use

Date: December 14th, 2011Category: CORHIO e-NewsletterTopics: EHRs, Meaningful Use, Regional Extension Center

Colorado Medical Society and CO-REC Collaborate to Launch Free Interactive Website Available to All Colorado Providers

The Colorado Medical Society and CO-REC have developed a free, self-guided educational tool to assist medical practices with many of the resources needed to achieve “Meaningful Use.” The online portal takes physicians and their staff through step-by-step training and educational modules to help them select, implement and meaningfully use certified electronic health record (EHR) technology. The portal is available to all Colorado physicians or practice staff members.

“CO-REC has grant funding to support nearly 2,300 primary care providers, but there are thousands of Colorado providers, like specialists, that do not qualify under REC funding guidelines for program support,” said CO-REC Director Robyn Leone. “We wanted to provide all of Colorado’s providers with a robust portfolio of resources that they could access on their own time in a self-directed way.”

Portal Featues & Functionality

The portal contains interactive tools including an EHR readiness assessment, EHR selection criteria assessments, EHR contract considerations, and pre-implementation checklists necessary for successful implementation. It also includes links to statewide resources and information on critical success factors and the most common "failure modes" that drive EHR/HIE implementation, detailed privacy and security requirements.

When visiting the portal for the first time, users will be asked to register. This allows the portal to save the user's information and keep track of progress. The portal is designed to help practices over a long period of time, with multiple logins as needed, while the practice works to achieve Meaningful Use. During each portal visit, users will often add or edit information in the portal.

Click here to access the portal.

The dynamic website is funded by The Physicians Foundation health information technology (HIT) grant awarded to the Colorado Medical Society Foundation to support physicians’ adoption of certified EHR systems through the development of tools and resources. The grant also funds 20 educational sessions and workshops across the state on Meaningful Use, EHR selection and implementation, and privacy and security of electronic health information. Fifteen Meaningful Use workshops were held in the first quarter of 2011 with over 500 attendees. Additional workshops on Meaningful Use and privacy and security guidelines will be held in the first quarter of 2012.

As of last month (November 2011), CO-REC is actively working with 2,295 primary care providers across the state in a coordinated push to help them achieve Meaningful Use of EHRs. Eighty percent of providers working with CO-REC have already adopted an EHR and 176 providers have successfully met the criteria for stage 1 of Meaningful Use, many of which were eligible for the Medicare Meaningful Use program and have successfully attested. CO-REC leveraged its knowledge and experience working with these providers to create the interactive portal.

Feedback and Suggestions Requested

CO-REC is encouraging practices and providers to provide feedback on the functionality and usability of the portal to provide guidance on enhancements. Comments can be submitted by email to Robyn Leone at rleone@corhio.org.

Related Information & Links:

  • Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services website for 'Meaningful Use'
  • Eligibility for 'Meaningful Use' incentives
  • Attestation for EHR incentive programs
  • Colorado Medicaid EHR Incentive Program provider outreach website