Power failures and internet crashes can prevent you from accessing your patients' records and it can be a struggle to know how to handle your patients. Write a plan for mitigating system failures and internet crashes as part of your overall disaster recovery plan to ensure your practice runs effectively and efficiently even if your electronic health record (EHR) is not functioning properly. Before an emergency occurs, you should outline the workflow that staff will use to continue providing and documenting health care. Having a plan in place will minimize the stress of the situation, as well as reduce the possibility of lost documentation.

Learn how to create a plan to minimize stress and protect your EHR data with the below resources:

• “EHR Meltdown: How to Protect Your Patient Data” in Family Practice Management tells the story of an EHR meltdown and offers lessons learned and step-by-step advice for developing your own EHR meltdown plan.
• The Health Resources and Services Administration offers the webinar video “Disaster Recovery Plans for HIT – Why Is It Important.”