"I'm a fan of it."

By James Baker, MD, Gig Harbor Medical Clinic

Dr. James Baker, a family practice provider with the Gig Harbor Medical Clinic in Gig Harbor, Washington, has been using a Web based Clinical Messaging and transcription solution since late 2000.

"I'm a fan of it," he states in a matter-of-fact manner. "We don't have an EMR but this is the closest thing to it. One of the main reasons I like it is that I don't have to pull a chart instead I can access the patients' clinical records right at my desk."

Dr. Baker and 65 other physicians with Franciscan Medical Group are taking a step by step approach to a full EMR—leading the way for the entire Franciscan Health System in the south Pugent Sound Region of Washington. The steps being to receive clinical results electronically, to manage those clinical results, and then to automate the transcription process. The next steps are electronic prescription Writing.

Dr. Baker says that he's finding both the Clinical Messaging and Transcription services much more useful as time goes by. "When a patient comes in for a physical, I'm able to update the existing record on the computer, which saves me time and money from not having to dictate a new report."

The transcribed notes are accurate and much more legible than those I write by hand," he adds. "And the information is accessible to everyone in our practice."

When a patient is hospitalized, hospital staff transcriptions go right to Dr. Baker's "inbox." "That makes it much easier to follow the care being given to my patients. I don't have to search for information anymore."