Pamela Q. Fernandes's Blog, page 34

I’m Back

I’m so sorry if you’ve been checking the website for the last two days. I transferred domains so as painful as it was, it had to be done. Now I’m on a self hosted domain and if anyone is wondering, I transferred from wordpress.com to wordpress.org. I was expecting five days of downtime, but by God’s grace it was about two.  Yay, win.

Hopefully, that’s the last time I  take the website offline. So plenty of good things coming.

Night in New Orleans was published on April 1 in ebook and paperback format.
Ten Reminders for the Single Christian Woman is out for pre-order. Now I have to get the book trailer made and I’m all excited.
I’m working on the next podcast for May on fellowship. It’s going to be awesome.  You will notice that I’ve put pictures of all our guests so you can now connect the voices with a face.
Keep your questions coming in for QMC and I’ll be happy to answer them. Right now, I’ve got a couple that are kinda related to what I’ve already written.

Get in touch with me if you have any comments or feedback. I’d love to hear from you. Moreover, do like us on social media and soundcloud and share the podcasts or written content with someone who might find it useful.

Cheers,

Pam

 

QMC 6 What to do if a colleague has an addiction?

I received this question without any additional details and it’s perfectly understandable, but it would’ve helped to know a few details.

My first question would be to what?

All of us are addicted to something. Some to coffee, mobile phones, the internet, exercise, and then the usual bad guys drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. An ugly one is also prescription medication. You’ve perhaps seen this in college, especially if you lived in a hostel/dorm. Somebody gets dumped and before you know it, they’re off the road. Or they’re trying and experimenting stuff and they need intervention.

What’s unusual is to find these guys in actual practice. Because by the time we’re in practice we’ve usually sorted our own baggage so as to not let it get in the way. But there are a few that succumb.

1.What is the addiction and how does it affect your colleague’s functioning?

Now if you were answering the boards, the answer to this would be: report it to the medical board and the doctor loses his license, your job is done. In a selfish world, that would be great, but if you’re a doctor that truly cares, I suggest you do more. Why should you do more, because as leaders in society we should be able to identify and prevent another doctor like Greg Miday from taking his life due to his addictions. To know more about the wonderful Dr Miday, go here. 

2. What’s the Level of impairment with addiction? 

Is your colleague drunk while operating? Is he frittering away money from the till on the races? Is he putting patients or himself at harm? Is he dependent or addicted? There’s a difference. Addiction is characterized by an inability to stop using a drug; failure to meet work, social, or family obligations. Physical dependence is where the body adapts to the drug, requiring more of it to achieve a certain effect (tolerance) and eliciting drug-specific physical or mental symptoms if drug use is abruptly ceased (withdrawal).  Dependence in and of itself does not constitute addiction, but it often accompanies addiction.

3. Talk it out with him

If you’re answer is yes to the above, then first you need to talk it out. Is there a trigger? Divorce? Family problems? Grief? Can you ask him to re-evaluate his habits and highlight the fact that he is putting patients in danger. If he shows remorse and is willing to seek help, talk to the supervisor at the hospital and do let him know first what you intend to do. Then get him help. Don’t just pass him off to the counselor or recommend meetings.

4. Create a plan

At this point, most will say why should I bother? But we owe it to one another. You’re saving a life, a talented, intelligent life, that has lost his way like most of us sometimes do. Create a plan. At this point, if the supervisor or director is included, it will result in a temporary suspension of license till he can get his act together. That’s a win for all. So create a three month plan.

5. A multi-target approach

Don’t just count on one approach. Use multiple approaches. One on one, group, family, medications, recovery plans. Do them all. You never know which one will benefit him. Don’t just be a bystander. Go with him to a meeting, ring him up and speak to him, follow up on his progress and struggles.

6. Compassion and Care

Many times you will be exasperated. Especially when he says, “Tomorrow, tomorrow I will stop.” But remember to be compassionate. It’s not easy. Walk a mile in their shoes and I don’t mean picking up a similar habit. There are going to be relapses and it’s in those times, you’re most needed as a friend. To show them to rise after a fall.

7. No shaming

Don’t allow your colleague to be bullied or shamed. Guard his privacy like a ninja and do whatever you can so that he feels comfortable being who he is. It turns out that physicians who get help, often excel at rehab. According to health service studies, they succeed at rates of 70% to 80%, which for addiction is astronomically high.

I know the easy answer to this question is report it and forget about it. But like I said before, we’re a small community. We owe it to each other. I leave you with this song. Every time I listen to it makes me cry. Its Brad Paisley and the angelic Alison Krauss singing, ‘Whisky Lullaby.’ It captures the triggers, the downward spiral and the aftermath of an addiction perfectly.

 

 

QMC 5 What to do if a colleague has an addiction?

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I received this question without any additional details and it’s perfectly understandable, but it would’ve helped to know a few details.

My first question would be to what?

All of us are addicted to something. Some to coffee, mobile phones, the internet, exercise, and then the usual bad guys drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. An ugly one is also prescription medication. You’ve perhaps seen this in college, especially if you lived in a hostel/dorm. Somebody gets dumped and before you know it, they’re off the road. Or they’re trying and experimenting stuff and they need intervention.

What’s unusual is to find these guys in actual practice. Because by the time we’re in practice we’ve usually sorted our own baggage so as to not let it get in the way. But there are a few that succumb.

1.What is the addiction and how does it affect your colleague’s functioning?

Now if you were answering the boards, the answer to this would be: report it to the medical board and the doctor loses his license, your job is done. In a selfish world, that would be great, but if you’re a doctor that truly cares, I suggest you do more. Why should you do more, because as leaders in society we should be able to identify and prevent another doctor like Greg Miday from taking his life due to his addictions. To know more about the wonderful Dr Miday, go here. 

2. What’s the Level of impairment with addiction? 

Is your colleague drunk while operating? Is he frittering away money from the till on the races? Is he putting patients or himself at harm? Is he dependent or addicted? There’s a difference. Addiction is characterized by an inability to stop using a drug; failure to meet work, social, or family obligations. Physical dependence is where the body adapts to the drug, requiring more of it to achieve a certain effect (tolerance) and eliciting drug-specific physical or mental symptoms if drug use is abruptly ceased (withdrawal).  Dependence in and of itself does not constitute addiction, but it often accompanies addiction.

3. Talk it out with him

If you’re answer is yes to the above, then first you need to talk it out. Is there a trigger? Divorce? Family problems? Grief? Can you ask him to re-evaluate his habits and highlight the fact that he is putting patients in danger. If he shows remorse and is willing to seek help, talk to the supervisor at the hospital and do let him know first what you intend to do. Then get him help. Don’t just pass him off to the counselor or recommend meetings.

4. Create a plan

At this point, most will say why should I bother? But we owe it to one another. You’re saving a life, a talented, intelligent life, that has lost his way like most of us sometimes do. Create a plan. At this point, if the supervisor or director is included, it will result in a temporary suspension of license till he can get his act together. That’s a win for all. So create a three month plan.

5. A multi-target approach

Don’t just count on one approach. Use multiple approaches. One on one, group, family, medications, recovery plans. Do them all. You never know which one will benefit him. Don’t just be a bystander. Go with him to a meeting, ring him up and speak to him, follow up on his progress and struggles.

6. Compassion and Care

Many times you will be exasperated. Especially when he says, “Tomorrow, tomorrow I will stop.” But remember to be compassionate. It’s not easy. Walk a mile in their shoes and I don’t mean picking up a similar habit. There are going to be relapses and it’s in those times, you’re most needed as a friend. To show them to rise after a fall.

7. No shaming

Don’t allow your colleague to be bullied or shamed. Guard his privacy like a ninja and do whatever you can so that he feels comfortable being who he is. It turns out that physicians who get help, often excel at rehab. According to health service studies, they succeed at rates of 70% to 80%, which for addiction is astronomically high.

I know the easy answer to this question is report it and forget about it. But like I said before, we’re a small community. We owe it to each other. I leave you with this song. Every time I listen to it makes me cry. Its Brad Paisley and the angelic Alison Krauss singing, ‘Whisky Lullaby.’ It captures the triggers, the downward spiral and the aftermath of an addiction perfectly.

 

 

Easter Gift Ideas

Its going to be Easter in a fortnight. We’re already gearing up for Holy Week. This weekend the Redemptorist Missions in our parish will conclude with a solemn high Mass. We’re so close to Passion Week.

But gifts! What do you give for Easter? Because Lent is such a deeply spiritual time, I don’t believe in the indulgence of giving away expensive or large gifts. My family will get a superb meal and then some small gift that will help them through the year, spiritually.

So I’ve rounded up some excellent gifts that you can give for Easter.

Handwritten Cards 

I remember my grandma used to always send out cards and even today in our community, people who receive cards hang them near the dinner table. A handwritten card says so much. It conveys that someone has taken the time to think of you.

If you do  pick a card, send an encouraging message inside, especially if you know the person is going through a hard time. Inscribe a verse, pray over and write a message that will truly bring the Easter light to someone’s home.

Check out these cards from Pio Prints.  They are printed on premium heavyweight smooth cover stock that is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified and acid free.

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We Are Easter people from Pioprints.com

Personalize Name Plates

This is especially great for those who will be newly baptized. It makes for a great gift, where the name is inserted into a form of poem and Bible promises. You can see more of them here.

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Baptism Name Plates from Etsy.com

Easter Lily 

I honestly pray that one day I may have my own garden where I can grow these, or even plant a bulb for my balcony. For now that will have to wait. I know many east Indian families who gift away a single Easter Lily if they’re invited to Easter Sunday brunch or dinner and nothing else. The Easter Lily represents the resurrection of Christ and also references Jesus as being “the lily of the valley,”  in Song of the Solomon, (2:1-2), “I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters,” and Hosea, (14:5), “I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon.”

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Audio and Video CD’s

I love some of the spiritual material from Word on Fire. Bishop Robert Barron shares his perspective on so many of our beliefs. I especially sign up for his seasonal reflections and because they were so popular, he now does daily reflections based on the Missal. So when I go to Sunday Mass, I don’t feel lost or confused, I know how meticulously our readings are arranged. You can sign up for these reflections for free.

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Tre Ore from wordonfire.org

As far as Easter gifts, it was something the our guest on the Christian Circle Podcast Episode 5, Mr. Charles Johnston mentioned that reminded me, through the year we should dwell on the passion of Christ. Its not just an Easter thing. “The Seven Last words of Jesus,” makes for an excellent listen on the Passion.

Books

There are certain people in my family who will devour books. I love this book that I was given as a gift this year, Between Sundays by Paul Boudreau. It has reflections based on the daily readings. I could add in a list of so many other books. But I’ll just stick with one.

For the kids, you may want to try, a coloring book.  Or even a short story book based on Easter like this.

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Between Sundays from Amazon.com

Chocolates and Candy

I try to make this every year and fail. I can bake anything and everything, but my candy making skills are zero. Something always goes wrong with my chocolates and my marzipan always gets hard or remains too soft. It just doesn’t work.  But we all know the Easter eggs, the cross shaped chocolates and lollipops, the chick shaped candy, all representing new life and eat them with relish.

So I end up buying local chocolates and candy from a local chocolatier, especially if I’m invited and have to take a gift basket.

Find a candy maker or check out RWA finalist Christina Hovland’s artisinal chocolates according to your needs, you can see more of her sweet confections here.

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Truffles from Cherrystreetchocolates.com

I must hasten to add, that its not about the gifts we give. You have to choose a gift that will spiritually enhance the Easter experience. It’s not about the medium but rather the end goal that you want to achieve. So if you want to gift some one a retreat or a subscription to a Christian magazine, then its the perfect excuse to gift someone a renewed spiritual experience. After all, that is our end goal, to build the body of Christ.

Tell me about your gifts ideas for this season.

Episode 5 Keeping the Lenten fire burning after Easter!

 

In this episode, I talk to popular blogger, Charles Johnston about the three pillars of Lent and how to keep up our Lenten practices long after Lent is over.

Charles Johnston is a father and husband in Phoenix, Arizona. His conversion journey has taken years, as he felt God pulling him toward His Church but he resisted until he couldn’t take it anymore. He gave in and fell in love with His Church.  He blogs for ‘Now that I’m catholic’ where you can find his post on the three pillars of Lent.

 

Charles answers questions about:

The three pillars of Lent.
How to increase prayer during Lent?
How abstinence makes us more spiritually aware?
The true spirit of alms giving
How do we keep up our Lenten practices after Easter

According to him, “You’ve got to take baby steps. Pick one prayer habit, give up one bad habit, and give five bucks extra.”

You can reach him on Facebook and Twitter @et_in_ecclesia

Image: CC0 Creative Common License, Pixabay.com

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Episode 5, Keeping the Lenten fire burning after Easter!

In this episode, I talk to popular blogger, Charles Johnston about the three pillars of Lent and how to keep up our Lenten practices long after Lent is over. Charles Johnston is a father and husband in Phoenix, Arizona. His conversion journey has taken years, as he felt God pulling him toward His Church but he resisted until he couldn’t take it anymore. He gave in and fell in love with His Church.  He blogs for ‘Now that I’m catholic’ where you can find his post on the three pillars of Lent.

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Charles answers questions about:

The three pillars of Lent.
How to increase prayer during Lent?
How abstinence makes us more spiritually aware?
The true spirit of alms giving
How do we keep up our Lenten practices after Easter

According to him, “You’ve got to take baby steps. Pick one prayer habit, give up one bad habit, and give five bucks extra.”

You can reach him on Facebook and Twitter @et_in_ecclesia

Image: CC0 Creative Common License, Pixabay.com

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Why every author must learn S.E.O?

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What is S.E.O?

Search Engine Optimization. Like all web analytic studies, when I first learned about S.E.O I was blown away. To be honest, I’m not following my own advice here. I’m not investing the time and money in plugging S.E.O. because I don’t have it. But if you’re an author who loves the marketing aspect of writing and has one hour every day to spend on this, it’s definitely worth it.

S.E.O is big business. I mean big businesses are hiring people to do their S.E.O and no, its not just about appearing in the first five pages of Google search. Its sooo much more.

If you want to learn the basics you can sign up for a free course at Coursera. I learned the basics because I’m a biology person, I can understand the technicalities of the human brain but not a computer. So, you can do a more specialized course, but this is the free one that I did.

There are tons of benefits of SEO, but I’ll just give you the author’s perspective.

Choosing Book titles

I never knew this before, but there’s a reason we’ve started seeing longer book titles like “How to sell more books in a depressed economy.” You must have seen these books with these super long titles, I mean how do they even fit it into a cover. The reason  being S.E.O. Google is changing S.E.O to be more specific to audience questions. They’re even going to change page ranking mechanisms this year.

So if Google starts seeing questions like how to sell more books in a bad economy, guess what, you’re book will be number one in the search findings. When you’re choosing a title, type in your title into a kewword tool. and check the keyword density. Also use the keywords generated or similar to describe your book in its descriptions or blurbs. Authors are now using S.E.O to create book titles. If its a keyword rich title, it will appear more often in search results.

Online presence

All authors are working to build a brand and having your name synonymous with something, especially if you’re writing in a particular niche can be super helpful. But if you work with S.E.O in mind, you will definitely be able to draw the right crowd in through search engines and search terms. While I don’t encourage keyword stuffing, if you’re using the right words you will be able to attract the right audience. Many websites offer separate plugins for S.E.O.

Its worth looking at the plugins on your website and reinforcing that through the plugin. For me its writing. So I make sure that’s part of the tags and S.E.O. in my writing posts. If you want to learn more, I suggest using Moz. They’re the best at teaching you stuff about this. Sign up with them. You won’t regret it. I must admit, some of it flies right past my head, but its good stuff.

Ads

Many of my co-authors at publishing houses are spending their own money on ads. Facebook ads, Twitter ads, Amazon ads, they’re putting their book out there, wherever possible. For all these ads you will have to use S.E.O. You can’t just create great copy for an ad. You have to search for comp titles, authors, genres and then create a copy stuffed with words to draw similar readers. In fact, I can write an entire blog post on doing S.E.O for ads. That’s how big it is.

Matching

S.E.O may not result in conversions no matter what you’re call to action is, but it does bring in the right crowd to you. If you’re a romance author, then it brings all the HEA fans to ya. If you write historical romances, you get the historical fans, if you write only for the Victorian era, then you can target S.E.O to rake in fans from there, if you’re writing medical historical romance then you will have a more tailored audience. The point I make is this, you can get as broad and as narrow as you like in drawing the right crowd who will actually buy your books and love them.

What do you think of S.E.O? How do you tackle it? I’m overwhelmed but learning. Care to share a few tips?

 

 

5 Questions to ask your book designer

I’ve worked on three book covers this year, “Ten Reminders for the Single Christian Woman,” “Cinders of Castlerea” and “Under a Scottish Sky.” The last book cover still remains to be done.

I’ve noticed many publishers now work with authors when it comes to book covers for long forms of work, like novellas and novels. Often you’ll be writing to the designer about the book’s tone, mood, theme, fonts and the pictures.

I wanted to share a few things you should ask your book cover designer if you’re hiring one or working with one.

Have they seen comp titles?

This is important. Don’t be shy. Just ask. Especially if there’s one you like. Often a cover you may like, may not be suitable for the genre you’re writing. So, one of the first questions you must ask your designer, especially one whose working from scratch, if they’ve seen comparative books in your genre.

Have you browsed through them? Just to get a look and feel of what’s currently on trend! For example, you can’t have a bright cheerful cover with lilies and fields for a violent psychological thriller. (Although that could work on another mental level if done right! Ha!) Send comp titles to your designer. Show them what is expected of your genre and what you’re expecting as well. Don’t say surprise me. They can and they will, but give them some breadth or you risk facing disappointment at your own peril.

 Does the stock photo have a commercial license?

This is a biggie. Often this is forgotten, especially if your’re using stock photos. Remember, you may purchase a photo, but that doesn’t mean it has a commercial license. Check this. Does your image have a commercial license? Some images have a license up to 499,000 sales, after which you must renew the license. So check the license of the image. Once you select a stock photo, ask about the commercial license of the image. Even if you hire a designer, get this commercial license.

Can the design be consistently replicated across platforms?

You will be creating a cover that can be used for ebooks, printbooks, hardcover, 3D covers, audio-books, social media headers, bookmarks and the list goes on. Can your book cover fit seamlessly into all of these without too much tweaking. Is it too dark, graphic heavy or just crowded to use it flawlessly? You’ve got to keep in mind, that book cover designers will charge you every time you want to edit or tweak things. Can the cover be used across all these platforms seamlessly? You want it to.

Are there Copyrights?

Authors everywhere have become wary. Out of the blue, they’re sued for an image or information that they didn’t give credit to, especially after they start making money. So find out, does any part of the cover have a copyright? Does your designer want anyone to be credited?

What are the Costs?

Ooh! This is the main one. Good covers cost money. Good covers are more than selecting a photo and slapping on words. It’s about concept and theme and getting a reader to take a chance on your characters before having met them. If you head out to fiverr, people make covers for five bucks a pop. Or you could buy a pre-made cover, where all the above questions would still be relevant or you could have one custom made, all of which costs money.

Ask your cover designer about the costs upfront. In my experience, it’s better to hire designers who draw and photograph themselves, because then the cost of the cover drops considerably. But the range is wide from 5- 500$. Though I have to admit an expensive cover doesn’t mean a better cover. You are the best judge of your book, get a cover that conveys your story.

What more tips do you have when creating a book cover? Let me know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5 Questions to ask your book designer

I’ve worked on three book covers this year, “Ten Reminders for the Single Christian Woman,” “Cinders of Castlerea” and “Under a Scottish Sky.” The last book cover still remains to be done.

I’ve noticed many publishers now work with authors when it comes to book covers for long forms of work, like novellas and novels. Often you’ll be writing to the designer about the book’s tone, mood, theme, fonts and the pictures.

I wanted to share a few things you should ask your book cover designer if you’re hiring one or working with one.

Have they seen comp titles?

This is important. Don’t be shy. Just ask. Especially if there’s one you like. Often a cover you may like, may not be suitable for the genre you’re writing. So, one of the first questions you must ask your designer, especially one whose working from scratch, if they’ve seen comparative books in your genre.

Have you browsed through them? Just to get a look and feel of what’s currently on trend! For example, you can’t have a bright cheerful cover with lilies and fields for a violent psychological thriller. (Although that could work on another mental level if done right! Ha!) Send comp titles to your designer. Show them what is expected of your genre and what you’re expecting as well. Don’t say surprise me. They can and they will, but give them some breadth or you risk facing disappointment at your own peril.

 Does the stock photo have a commercial license?

This is a biggie. Often this is forgotten, especially if your’re using stock photos. Remember, you may purchase a photo, but that doesn’t mean it has a commercial license. Check this. Does your image have a commercial license? Some images have a license up to 499,000 sales, after which you must renew the license. So check the license of the image. Once you select a stock photo, ask about the commercial license of the image. Even if you hire a designer, get this commercial license.

Can the design be consistently replicated across platforms?

You will be creating a cover that can be used for ebooks, printbooks, hardcover, 3D covers, audio-books, social media headers, bookmarks and the list goes on. Can your book cover fit seamlessly into all of these without too much tweaking. Is it too dark, graphic heavy or just crowded to use it flawlessly? You’ve got to keep in mind, that book cover designers will charge you every time you want to edit or tweak things. Can the cover be used across all these platforms seamlessly? You want it to.

Are there Copyrights?

Authors everywhere have become wary. Out of the blue, they’re sued for an image or information that they didn’t give credit to, especially after they start making money. So find out, does any part of the cover have a copyright? Does your designer want anyone to be credited?

What are the Costs?

Ooh! This is the main one. Good covers cost money. Good covers are more than selecting a photo and slapping on words. It’s about concept and theme and getting a reader to take a chance on your characters before having met them. If you head out to fiverr, people make covers for five bucks a pop. Or you could buy a pre-made cover, where all the above questions would still be relevant or you could have one custom made, all of which costs money.

Ask your cover designer about the costs upfront. In my experience, it’s better to hire designers who draw and photograph themselves, because then the cost of the cover drops considerably. But the range is wide from 5- 500$. Though I have to admit an expensive cover doesn’t mean a better cover. You are the best judge of your book, get a cover that conveys your story.

What more tips do you have when creating a book cover? Let me know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

QMC 5 Should I invest in EMR?

I had a question from Dr. KC the other day,asking if he should invest in an EMR?

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For those of you who’re still stuck with paper and pen, then here’s the low down. EMR is an Electronic medical record. All records are entered and stored on a centralized system.

The EMR trend gained traction largely because of Insurance companies and not to deliver better health care. With the arrival of billing, insurance, and ICD-10 the pressure on doctors is increasing to micro diagnose.

I’ll give you the advantages and disadvantages of the EMR and leave you to make your own decision. I’m comfortable with the EMR, because as an author I’m a very fast typist. It doesn’t make me a better doctor. But I do find that sometimes, a return to paper would be far better than wasting time checking all the boxes and filling an entire EMR. I’ve worked with a number of EMR’s, from ready-to-use software to customized EMR’s. Similar problems are pervasive throughout.

Advantages:

1. Clear, no ambiguity – Since handwriting does not come into play, nothing is vague. Everything is clear, in black and white. There’s no second guessing a doctor’s orders. It’s fairly easy to catch a mistake.

2. Organized- All the information is one one place. You don’t need to rely on a secretary of a filing system to search for files, reports, etc. It’s all on the system.

3. Labs and X-ray uploaded electronically. You don’t need to have a physical copy in your hand. If the lab uploads the reports on the system, instantly you have it.

4. Accessibility -You can see if another doctor has seen your patient and follow his notes online.

5. Easy- For a tech savvy person, it’s pretty easy. The ease of filling up information can actually disrupt any summary or history writing skills you have.

Disadvantages:

1. Privacy – As much as we trust doctors to keep things confidential, there are issues of privacy. Any doctor, nurse, physio that has access to EMR will be able to see files, unlike with physical copies where a secretary would guard them with her life & only let you see it, if you’re a consultant on the case. This is a major issue

2. Time- The AMA says, it definitely has increased the time doctors spend on filling paperwork by forty eight minutes. It can be a bit of a time-suck, typing and checking all the boxes.

3. Costs- Its expensive. Whether its a pay per episode, per patient or per GB, its expensive, which is why its not something all hospitals are transitioning to. North of 5 lacs in INR and 33,000$ depending on where you are. The agencies that do customize this, charge you every time you want to change something.

4. Loading time- If too many people are on the system or too many files are open, the system does slow down considerably. Not nice, when you’re sitting with your patient and he’s blankly staring at your face, because you have no clue what his last blood pressure was. Frustrating to say the least.

For a small group practice I would say the cost benefit ratio is low. Unless you plan to expand to multiple centers or branches. But if you’re running a large practice with multiple doctors, multiple centers or something institutionally larger like a nursing home or hospital, you should definitely consider it.

What do you think of the EMR? Many of my friends have transitioned back to paper after working on the EMR in order to fight the insurance lobby. What do you think?

References:

McDonald, Clement J.; Callaghan, Fiona M.; Weissman, Arlene; Goodwin, Rebecca M.; Mundkur, Mallika; Kuhn, Thomson (November 2014). “Use of Internist’s Free Time by Ambulatory Care Electronic Medical Record Systems”. JAMA Intern Med. 174 (11): 1860–1863. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2014.4506.