Doctor Feedback Drives EHR Evolution

80 percent of user requests make it into Practice Fusion's Electronic Health Record

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Mar 24, 2010, 08:00 ET

SAN FRANCISCO, March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Practice Fusion celebrates the unique contribution of its 31,000 doctors, nurses and front office staff users in helping optimize the company's free, web-based Electronic Health Record (EHR) system. The fastest growing EHR community in the country, Practice Fusion, today launched a new community page where users can interact in real-time.

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Any Practice Fusion user can easily submit feature requests and suggestions through the EHR system directly to the company's product developers. Each request is reviewed, tagged, grouped and sorted by priority. Features of the EHR are implemented according to demand and range from simple usability upgrades to customized practice management features. Because its EHR is web-based, Practice Fusion can seamlessly deliver product updates with no downtime or technical nuisance to its users.

Practice Fusion's innovative EHR included the following user-requested enhancements in its last release alone:

A detailed revamp of their scheduling system
Quick link menu with shortcuts to popular next steps while charting
Performance upgrade to help their EHR run faster
Updated medication list
Plus another 45 user-requested changes

"The user's experience is at the forefront of every engineering decision we make," said Matthew Douglass, Practice Fusion's Vice President of Engineering. "Not only do we give great service and support, we try to remain humble and never assume that we know what is best. Our effort, passion, sacrifice and dedication are guided by our interactions with the best resource we have: our users."

Key facts:

17,000+ total user requests received since launch
80 percent of requests are ultimately incorporated into the EHR system
EHR enhancements are released every two to three weeks
Free e-prescribing, launched in January 2010, was the most-requested feature in company history
Practice Fusion currently has 31,000 users and adds 100 new users each business day

Amy Smith, General Manager at WeightLoss MD in Atlanta, said after the latest release, "Thank you for making my life easier. I'm so excited to be part of early innovators who chose to implement, stick by, and grow with Practice Fusion. It has streamlined our operations immensely."

To support its user community, Practice Fusion has launched a new community page that incorporates case study videos, testimonials, social media links and direct connections to Practice Fusion's team. In addition to improving patient care and reducing medical errors, medical providers who adopt an EHR can qualify for $44,000 in HITECH incentives starting in 2011.

About Practice Fusion

Practice Fusion provides a free, web-based Electronic Health Record (EHR) system to physicians. With charting, scheduling, e-prescribing, billing, lab integrations, unlimited support and a Personal Health Record for patients, Practice Fusion's EHR addresses the complex needs of today's healthcare providers and disrupts the health IT status quo. Practice Fusion is the fastest growing EHR community in the country with more than 31,000 users. Salesforce.com and Morgenthaler Ventures each own a minority interest in Practice Fusion. For more information on Practice Fusion, please visit practicefusion.com.