Planning and Implementation

• Ensure to communicate your organization’s aims and workflows during the planning and implementation phase.  Communicating your aims and workflows will ensure the technology is being fully leveraged and configurations can be made before the system goes “live”.
• Consider the software solution’s ability to be configured.  To get the most out of a solution take especial interest in the configuration of the software. The software should be flexible enough to meet the specific workflow needs of your organization and beyond.
• Consider interoperability and the usage of an integration engine if your organization is dealing with multiple practices and multiple EHRs.   Not having interoperability can cause duplicity of effort and wasted time. By using an integration engine to interface with each of the EHR system you can drastically improve efficiency for the coordination team.
• Consider the infrastructure/connectivity needs of the solution.   Make sure your organization can support the connectivity needs of the solutions.  If reliant on wireless connection, ensure adequate coverage onsite and offsite if needed.
• Make the time commitment required to successfully realize the potential benefits of the solution up front.  Make time upfront to ensure all the relevant information is captured.

Training and Support

• Set clear expectations for usage of the solution by staff and patients.  Educating the patient on the expectations and obtaining their agreement early on will lead to success.
• Patients tend to be less eager to participate at times when the technology is introduced to them by non-clinical staff. It is important to have a trusted clinical source as part of the training team.

For more details, please check the individual Shared Care Planning and Coordination Case Studies.