I'm back from a lovely break at a lake in the woods of Wisconsin - what soul-soothing natural beauty and fun with friends we experienced!

As I plunge back into work, I thought I'd first offer an interesting post from The Health Care Blog on the McAllen TX debate (the article that got President Obama's attention). Great read if you have time - the comments are especially worth your time.

Next is an article from the AMA News, "Before buying an EMR system, learn from others' mistakes".

From reports I've had from physician colleagues and clients, implementing an EMR in a practice is far from a piece of cake.

The suggestion:

Finding the right practice to talk to, and figuring out the best questions to ask, may take some homework and planning. But it's worth the time and effort.

And here's some advice:

"What to ask EMR veterans

Experts say there are a handful of key questions that should always be asked of references, whether you found them on your own, or through your potential vendors:

* If you had it to do over again, what would you do differently?
* Would you recommend the same vendor?
* Did you budget correctly?
* What are the ongoing maintenance costs?
* How long did the system take to implement and what were the problems you encountered?
* How did you handle converting data from paper to electronic? How was data abstracted?

Just being aware of the most common problems can help guide you through the process, experts say. HIA's Howe said even if a practice is satisfied with its vendor overall, chances are things did not go perfectly and something was learned along the way."

It made me think that there has to be an entrepreneurial opportunity setting up a discussion site for physicians and their practice managers, perhaps supported by vendor advertising, that offers the kinds of learning and insights that only true experience can offer!

Who's up for the challenge? :-)