FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) June 15, 2009 -- Would EMR of saved Elvis Presley? Technically speaking, yes. Of course the United States EMR initiative isn’t there yet, but that is the plan. By 2015, the goal is to have every medical clinic, medical office, hospital all securely sharing patient information. Most likely through the HL7 (Health Level 7) Exchange.

So what killed Elvis? The official cause of Elvis's death is listed as heart arrhythmia -- a heart attack. Michael M. Baden and Judith Adler Hennessee wrote in Unnatural Death: Confessions of a Medical Examiner: "Elvis had had an enlarged heart for a long time. That, together with his drug habit, caused his death.” As far as Elvis dyeing on the toilet, well that’s just too much information. Additionally, with a significant amount of coronary atherosclerosis,

1

Would EMR of saved Elvis Presley?

More from the author

• Sink or Swim Business Trends in Today’s Economy
• Your Resume on Steroids!
• ONLINE SAP Business One University is changing the way people learn ERP

there was extensive liver damage, and the large intestine was clogged with fecal matter, indicating a chronic and painful bowel condition.

An enlarged heart may be accompanied by symptoms such as shortness of breath (dyspnea), dizziness, swelling (edema) or irregular heart beat (arrhythmia). Had this information been present in Elvis EMR record, would he of received the appropriate tests, i.e. Echocardiogram, Chest X-ray or Stress Test? Probably so. Would the volume of Demerol and morphine shots been continually prescribed? Probably not.

One can only speculate that Elvis course of treatment would have been different if every treating physician had his historical health record access.

If the EMR technology today had existed 50 years ago, we

would probably be watching episodes of Elvis on Celeb Rehab, with hundreds of more Elvis songs in his repitwa.

Sometimes it takes looking back at history, to see what could have been. Moving forward, we all stem to gain something from EMR.

Patients should receive a more concise diagnosis, with a reduction in prescription errors.

Physicians can see more patients in less amount of time. Bill at higher E&M coding levels, while lowering their malpractice insurance.

Medical staff professionals never have to pull a paper chart again. On September 30, 2004, Merck & Co. announced the Vioxx withdrawal after clinical studies linked the drug with increased risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems. Hundreds upon thousands of paper charts were pulled, searching for patients to be contacted. With an EMR solution, this would have been as easy as running a report.

With that being said, Octave Solutions is leading the way with PrognoCIS EMR. PrognoCIS EMR is the fastest growing EMR solution in the market today. Used by thousands of physicians, PrognoCIS is the low cost, CCHIT certified, EMR software leader.

See an online EMR demonstration at www.octavesolutions.com. Contact us to schedule a personalized demonstration for your specialty.