Learn how a leader in social services embraced organizational change management to prepare their EHR for Alternative Payment Models and Selective Contracting within their IDA services line.
About Access Services and Intellectual Disabilities and Autism
Access Services, Inc. is a leader in social services programs across four service lines – Behavioral Health (BH), Children and Family Services (CFS), Housing and Homeless Services (HH), and Intellectual Disability and Autism (IDA). Their IDA service line employs social and other care workers who deliver services across nine programs, such as adult respite services and day programs.
To adopt a fully implemented Electronic Health Record (EHR), Access Services needed an EHR solution that would allow them to standardize over two dozen programs across their service lines. At the same time, they needed the EHR to accommodate variations among service lines and programs, allow for remote entry, and work seamlessly for staff across levels of user technical and clinical experience.
The Challenge
IDA had fallen behind, as the service line staff were using their existing EHR in a half-baked way – where staff were neither fully engaged with the EHR, nor leveraging its power to capture all relevant case information. To prepare for Alternative Payment Models and Selective Contracting being introduced in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Access Services found it necessary to fill in the gaps of their half-baked systems.
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For example, their existing system did not allow for remote logins, and staff documented clinical notes on paper. Failing to leverage their EHR for clinical notes caused cascading delays in IDA’s key operational processes and outcomes. The lag in capturing clinical notes lengthened the billing cycle, which in turn hindered reimbursement, ultimately impeding Access Services’ cash flow.
Most importantly, documenting and standardizing workflows to capture session data according to best practices was essential for Access Services. As EHR systems have been shown to improve the quality of clinical notes, Access Services’ EHR solution could address these clinical and technological needs. However, the shift to a Fully Implemented and Optimized EHR would be meaningless to IDA if their methods for capturing case data were flawed in the first place.
The Solution
The agency journey offered by enkompas Technology Solutions begins with the end in mind: Full EHR Adoption. We begin with this vision because technology leads to improvements only when workflows are documented and optimized so staff can meaningfully engage with the technology.
enkompas helped Access Services champion Organizational Change Management (OCM) as a blueprint for success, as any successful system implementation requires “Adoption and Ownership” by agency leadership. Project Management and Organizational Change Management Experts from enkompas established the proven, step-by-step OCM process for the team at Access Services, spanning five main phases of the implementation: Vision, Team, Planning, Implementation, and Support.
Behind the scenes, the enkompas team of Project Managers and EHR experts orchestrated every step in the process models for fully implementing and adopting the EHR. enkompas worked with Leadership, Clinical Staff, and Finance to coordinate workflow mapping, communication, training, testing, and more. With enkompas managing the project, the agency took the lead and full ownership of the EHR process without sacrificing quality of care during the transition.
The Results
The value of IDA Service Line clinical notes improved in both quality and timeliness. Quality improved because enkompas helped Access Services create precise, consistent forms and guidelines for clinical notes. Establishing the right processes made it simple for staff to record clinical notes necessary for compliance and collaboration.
In addition, enkompas spearheaded train-the-trainer sessions, giving Access Services full ownership of EHR adoption. Trainers and staff were grouped by program to streamline the training and make it easier for staff members to absorb. Further, helping Access Services develop these EHR “super-users” facilitated training new staff during onboarding.
Further, enkompas EHR Subject Matter Experts invested considerable time rolling out the “Notes” component of the EHR, training the staff on the technology and best practices for reporting. Leveraging the EHR’s capabilities not only improved the quality of clinical notes but also provided the IDA service line with access to real-time data, arming them with reporting to enforce regulatory compliance and accountability.
Finally, Access Services realized additional benefits that accumulate when an agency gathers complete, accurate data useful for decision making. Access Services reported significant improvements in myriad areas, including billing efficiencies and onboarding of new staff.
Access Services also identified strategic opportunities they are now prepared to pursue due to their effective EHR implementation. These include starting new or expanding existing programs and full alignment with Value-Based Contracts and Selective Contracting.
Summary
The EHR implementation at Access Services transformed the agency’s preparation for Alternative Payment Models and Selective Contracting. enkompas Technology Solutions guidance through the Organizational Change Management Blueprint and our Project Management and Subject Matter Expertise allowed the agency to realize this transformation without sacrificing the care they deliver.
The IDA service line at Access Services skyrocketed their tech savviness, compliance for clinical notes, and ability to obtain real-time data required for decision making and regulatory compliance. The improved outcomes reported by Access Services affirm the transformational nature of an EHR implementation grounded in organizational change management.
About enkompas Technology Solutions
enkompas powers your entire technology environment, working closely with your team to provide strategic enterprise technology solutions. With nearly 30 years of experience as a trusted managed IT services partner, our goal is to help you build a secure, scalable organizational roadmap. Contact us for more information on how enkompas Technology Solutions can help your organization achieve similar EHR implementation success, guided by our Subject Matter Experts and proven Organizational Change Management Blueprint.
