Why use Technical Doctor Inc IT Support!

1. We are IT savvy and well rounded in the healthcare space
2. We talk to our customers in terms they understand
3. We are effective with multitasking
4. We turn complex scenarios into simple and secure solutions 

5. Our company is a team not an individual

6. We are well versed in all EHRs

7. We have state-of the art IT support tools to manage your infrastructure

8. Over $100,000 spent on internal infrastrucure

The health of Technical Doctor was created by our love for healthcare and Physicians Practices. We understand the economy, patient care, cost of service and especially IT necessities within a practice. We’d like to heal and assist and soften the paradigm shift into healthcare technology with exceptional support with a cost savings perspective.

“We don’t need an IT department! We have our doctor, the office manager’s son, a staff member’s boyfriend, a buddy of mine… “ Remember this is your business and a secure home for your patient records.

You wouldn’t have your mechanic work on your taxes or leave your wallet on top of your mailbox, would you?

With Technical Doctor; IT issues are resolved within minutes or worked on while the staff member continues their regular office duties. We have trained professionals to execute and resolve matters at the time they occur instead of waiting.
That’s a savings in itself!

What are the Physician Office’s technology needs?
Physician offices spend a minimum of 5 to 8 hours a month regarding IT needs. These IT needs range from resolving “how to” questions and troubleshooting slowness.
Computers
Networks (LAN / WAN)
Printers / Scanners
Wireless drops
Internet
Security
Microsoft updates
EHR issues
Maintenance
Backups
And more…

Monthly Support (what does it include)
•Monday - Friday 8am - 5pm (Standard)
•Unlimited IT phone & e-mail support
•Web portal to monitor and report on your help-desk tickets
•Instant connection to help view errors and resolve your issues
•TD reports on your support utilization (by request)
•TD purchasing power to help keep hardware costs under competition
•Clients are always welcome to purchase their own hardware and will be responsible for returns if any defects PLUS: 24/7 PC Monitoring on all PC’s -Memory utilization -Hard Drive space -CPU motoring -Microsoft updates -Antivirus updates -Malware updates


Purchasing Hardware at the right price!!
Purchasing is another aspect of a physician offices’ IT /business needs. Using Technical Doctor can save you hundreds to thousands of dollars on all your IT related hardware/software purchases verses going to a retail store or popular online sites.
If you would like to make purchases, we have strong affiliation with leading vendors like CDW, DELL, etc and will provide you with free quotes. Technical Doctor’s relationships with these top quality vendors are to ensure reduced pricing.

Placing a Service call
Communications
1.Customer Portal
2.TD Desktop icon
3.Email
4.Phone call
5.Inform a TECH while on site

Communications
Systems Down and Outages are taken very seriously at Technical Doctor. We assume the practice is seeing one of our family members or friends.

System down issues are handled in a processed manner. We get a full understanding of the system failure and reverse engineer the technical process and make the appropriate time sensitive decisions.

We have helped bring systems back with non-tech-savvy staff members by talking to them like people, not like techs!

We have helped EHR technicians understand the severity of issues by pointing out the exact problem in a technical manner so they can work directly on a resolution and not spend precious time trying to understand what’s happening!

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Choosing Right Hardware for your practice

One of the most frequent questions I get from practices selecting an EHR revolves around the IT hardware they should purchase. The first and foremost important piece of advice is to talk to your EHR vendor to determine the technical requirements of their system and any recommendations they have regarding hardware for your practice. In addition, ask if they resell any hardware and, if so, what the advantages are of purchasing directly through the vendor.

Before going any further, let me emphasize that any reference to specific companies and products is used only as an example and in no way indicates a recommendation or endorsement of the given product or company.

Laptops vs. Desktops

When considering if you want to use laptops or desktops in your exam room consider how you want to interact with the computer when you are with your patients. Many clinicians are concerned about how having a computer in the exam room will change their interaction with the patient. Dr. Brookstone in his AmericanEHR posting on “How to Integrate Computers Into Your Practice for Maximum Patient Benefit” and “The Occupational Side Effects of EHRs” outlines some important considerations.

Recognizing that different providers have different alternatives regarding the hardware that works best for them, try to allow for these preferences in your office design. For instance some practices assign exam rooms to each clinician. If this is the case in your practice you may consider different configurations in designated exam rooms. When looking at laptops, decide if you want a traditional laptop or one that has a touchscreen such as the HP ProBook Notebook or Toshiba’s Convertible Laptops. These allow the user to tap though a note without using a keyboard. Convertible laptops have been quite popular amongst many physicians and many emphasize the importance of weight and battery life.

Mobile Devices & Tablet Computers

The emergence of tablets like Apple’s iPad and Motorola’s Xoom have created a large buzz amongst healthcare providers, as they seem to offer a great new hardware solution for clinicians. When considering this type of device you will need to check with your EHR vendor to ensure they are supported and whether they offer full or just limited functionality. AmericanEHR Partners has more information on the way tables are accelerating Health IT adoption here.

Many clinicians also like the ability to use smartphones such as the iPhone or RIM Blackberry to access their EHR.  As with tablets you need to ensure that your EHR vendor supports these devices and understand the functionalities that are offered.

It is especially important to consider your practice’s privacy and security procedures for managing device that have access to personal health information (PHI) and how you will deal with a device being lost or stolen.  A number of companies offer solutions that enable you to remotely wipe (delete all data) on a devices in the event that it is lost or stolen.

Server

Linux vs. Windows

Most EHR vendors only support Microsoft OS servers. For those who have a choice, Linux/Unix systems are felt to be more stable (less prone to crashes) and fewer security issues than their Windows counterparts. However, it is far easier to find technical support for Windows servers.

Backup requirements

If you have a client-server EHR, you will need to have a redundant backup process in place for your system. This can be a tape, hard drive, or remote (over the Internet) backup. If you choose tape or hard drive backup, make sure to keep a copy of each backup offsite. Many EHR vendors are starting to offer remote backup options, which may be the easiest solution for most small practices.

Internet Connection

You will want to make sure you have a broadband (high-speed) Internet connection in your practice. This is especially important if you are using an ASP or web-based system. There are several types of broadband connections you can get for your practice; the most common are DSL, T-1 line, high speed cable, or broadband wireless: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Broadband_Internet_access. Given the importance of Internet access to the operations of your practice, I recommend that you have a second alternative for Internet access. For instance, having a broadband cable line for daily use and wireless Internet access from a cell phone company.

If your practice uses laptops or other mobile devices, you will likely want to consider using wireless Internet instead of, or in addition to, a wired connection. When choosing wireless, ensure the highest bandwidth router possible (typically 802.11n wireless Internet routers) and make sure that you have a secure wireless network to access your practice data and computer system.

Hardware and Technical Support

One of the most important things to consider when purchasing IT hardware is the warrantees and technical support. When implementing an IT project of the scale required for an EHR implementation you will either want to hire a technical support staff, or contract with a company for IT support (this can be your EHR vendor if they resell/support hardware). When contracting with an external firm you should specify the levels of support and how quickly problems will be resolved. In a recent blog post, AmericanEHR User Comments on Hardware Support, members of AmericanEHR share their experiences with hardware support. links and important online study material that could help them understand and work on their condition better.

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The Use of Tablets in the World of EMRs

With a growing number of physicians adopting tablet PCs for their EMR implementations, EMR vendors and IT manufacturers are looking to build compatible native systems to facilitate user-friendly and efficient EMR execution. From table desktops to thin clients and now the tablet, EMRs have been tried and tested on a variety of hardware, each bringing its own benefits and drawbacks. However, the striking surge in EMR adoption on tablet PCs has made providers sit up and take notice of this remarkably promising technology. 

 Evolution of Tablets in the EMR Space

The tablet technology has found a significant number of users in the healthcare industry. A survey conducted by Manhattan Research reveals that practitioners are leaning largely towards mobile platforms in order to improve the productivity and quality of care, as well as for efficient EMR implementations. According to the research, it is estimated that around 30% of doctors own an iPad, which is the leader in the tablet PC market today. Supported by increased bandwidths and wireless internet speeds, the tablet is expected to become a popular choice among physicians, who are already displaying considerable interest in EMR adoption on tablets. Tracing this dramatic rise in the adoption of tablet PCs in the healthcare industry, IT companies are working on designing specialized platforms that connect smart devices like tablets and smartphones to EMRs. 

Tablets and EMRs  

Even though EMRs on wireless tablets are neatly poised to be the next big thing in the healthcare industry, they do have their detractors. Positively, tablets lend EMRs a host of benefits ranging from portability and enhanced patient communication to increased data accessibility and productivity. Physicians who have worked with EMRs on tablet PCs appreciate their connectivity, usability and design benefits. Tablets are small and light, easy to use and can be conveniently carried for patient visits (as opposed to old-world hospital carts carrying the EMRs on king-sized, unhandy desktops). Physicians can access data from hospital systems and complete their charting in real time while working with patients. Notes can be handwritten using tablets and documents can be wirelessly sent for printing directly from the device. Tablet interface also opens up communication channels between the patients and doctors, contributing to better relationships and improved quality of care. 

While tablet PCs are serving EMR implementations well by helping physicians devise a seamless and efficient flow of healthcare processes, users have nonetheless identified a number of pain points that need to be addressed for the tablet to deliver a dependable and sure-fire system to support EMRs. Firstly, most tablets are not designed specifically for medical use (though this appears to be changing as tablet marketers have identified compelling potential in the healthcare industry). Physicians may not be comfortable using the touchscreen on tablets that do not have a stylus. This makes the data entry process sluggish and eats into the valuable time doctors can spend interacting with patients. Tablets are also tough to clean and sterilize, and touchscreens don’t work with surgical gloves. Since it is a relatively newer technology, hospital IT infrastructure and wireless networking platforms are often not equipped to support and integrate EMR implementations on the tablet. It is easy to lose your wireless signal in old hospital buildings with limited IT support, and a tablet with dropped wireless is as good as of no use considering that most Medical Solutions for the Tablets today are pretty much web based solutions.  

Selecting a Tablet for your EMR

There are a number of factors physicians must consider before investing in a tablet to run their EMR. It is important to ensure that your tablet serves all the primary EMR functions and process requirements. To begin with, your tablet must have a good battery life. It must be easy to operate, user-friendly and durable. Tablets are available in two styles, the slate-style and the convertible-style. The convertible-style has a built-in keyboard and therefore, is heavier as compared to slate-style tablets that do not have a keyboard.  

It is always better to go for specialized tablets that have been specifically designed for medical and EMR use. iPad and Android are introducing a number of features and applications that support a host of certified EMR systems. Samsung is also making custom Android operating system tablets for EMR and medical use. CNET editors list the highest-rated tablets in the market with Apple iPad 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab, Asus Eee Pad Transformer, BlackBerry PlayBook and T-Mobile G-Slate emerging as top contenders. Other models that have become popular with physicians are Motion LE1600 Tablet PC by Motion Computing and Fujitsu ST5000 Tablet PC by Fujitsu. They are both slate-style tablets and range between $2000-$2500. The Toshiba Portege, Acer C200 and IMB Thinkpad are also good convertible-style options. 

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