What You Should Know:
– A new report from KLAS Research, “EHR Clinical Optimization 2025,” reveals a high-performing market for services firms that help healthcare organizations optimize their Electronic Health Record (EHR) technology and associated workflows.
– As hospitals continue to heavily invest in their EHRs to enhance care delivery and reduce clinician burdens, many still struggle to fully realize these benefits amidst operational challenges and mounting administrative demands.
– The report highlights a steady growth in validated engagements for EHR clinical optimization since 2018, underscoring the critical need for external support. Notably, clinician requests for EHR improvements remain consistent, with 67% of physicians and 45% of nurses not feeling their EHR enables efficiency. Relieving documentation burden is a top-three request for physicians and the top request for nurses.
Nordic and Chartis Drive High Client Satisfaction
In an overall high-performing market for EHR clinical optimization services, Nordic and Chartis stand out for consistently delivering exceptional client satisfaction. They are the only fully rated firms with no dissatisfied interviewed clients.
- Nordic, the 2025 Best in KLAS winner for this segment , is praised for leading impactful engagements that deliver tangible outcomes. Clients report that Nordic consistently takes the initiative to guide projects in alignment with organizational goals and demonstrates a deep understanding of their EHR environments and unique challenges, often sharing best practices from peer organizations.
- Chartis is recognized for cultivating strong client relationships, being viewed as a highly responsive, flexible, and communicative partner. Respondents consistently highlight Chartis’s staff and consultants as high quality, experienced, and knowledgeable. These strengths contribute to Chartis receiving the highest satisfaction among fully rated firms for relationship-driven metrics and overall satisfaction.
Other fully rated firms, including ReMedi Health Solutions, Impact Advisors, and Huron, also generally deliver positive experiences and strong outcomes, despite isolated variations in client satisfaction. These firms are valued for strong consultants, deep EHR expertise, clear communication, proactive insights, professionalism, and effective project management.
Key Considerations for Choosing an Optimization Partner
KLAS has identified four high-impact factors organizations should consider when selecting an EHR clinical optimization firm:
- EHR in Use: Given Epic’s leading market share, Epic users have the widest pool of firms with validated experience. However, many firms also have validated engagements with other major EHR solutions, including MEDITECH and Oracle Health.
- Type of System or Workflow Optimized: Organizations should align partner capabilities with specific project needs, considering whether the focus is acute care, ambulatory care, patient accounting systems, or ancillary solutions (e.g., lab, OR, ED, pharmacy).
- Type of Work Needed: EHR optimization typically involves three core strategies: training, workflow assessment and refinement, and application enhancement, with effective change management being a critical component. Firms vary in their validated experience across these areas.
- Mode of Delivery: Both predominantly in-person and remote engagements have demonstrated high satisfaction, suggesting remote delivery can be effective when paired with due diligence and best practices to mitigate risk.
Avoiding Pitfalls and Implementing Best Practices
To set up clinical optimization projects for success, KLAS recommends organizations and firms should adhere to these best practices:
- Clearly define goals and KPIs early to ensure alignment on desired clinical, operational, and financial outcomes.
- Agree on communication cadence and build in evaluation milestones for regular progress assessment.
- Seek specific references and prior expertise from firms with similar project types or organizational experience.
- Partner on co-creation and customization to develop tailored strategies rather than relying on one-size-fits-all approaches.
- Collaborate on mitigation plans for common risks like turnover, ensuring strong documentation and processes for seamless replacements.
