Why Every Mental Health Professional Should Use EHR

Many therapists and mental health professionals are implanting electronic health records (EHR) into their practices. Historically, a therapist would simply make notes on a piece of paper and then file it away. Although this worked for a time, there are much better ways to take notes now. Here are a couple reasons why every mental health professional should start using a behavioral health EHR system.

1. Better Organization

Many therapists spend a good deal of time organizing their records. It can take hours each week to make sure that you have everything in order. The hard thing is that you can rarely get help with this task, because all of the information in the notes is confidential. This means that you cannot have your receptionist, spouse, or cleaning service help you organize the records. It must be you.

When you use an EHR system, you don't have to worry about filing or organizing the records. You can have files with each person's name, and the system will help to keep everything organized by date, service, client, and so forth. This can protect your clients privacy while still keeping things organized. 

2. Liability Protection

It is not uncommon for a therapist to be sued or to have to testify in court. If you are in a position where your services are in question, or they need you to testify against a client, you need really good notes. If you don't, you could be in trouble.

Having good notes that are organized and valid will only serve to protect you. When you use an EHR system, you can be sure that the courts will take your notes more seriously. With an EHR system, you cannot alter the notes as easily, and the notes keep comprehensive details for each record.

3. Save Time and Money

An EHR system is much easier and faster to use. Because you will spend less time working on record keeping, you can have more time with clients. You might even be able to take on more clients even though you are spending the same amount of time at work.

For these reasons, and many more, mental health professionals are choosing to implement electronic health records into their practice. It is the best way to stay organized, to protect yourself, and to save money. If you haven't already implemented EHR into your practice, now is the time to do it. 


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