Before you buy, evaluate the vendor's responsiveness

Technically Speaking. By Pamela Lewis Dolan, AMNews staff. Sept. 8, 2008.

Three years ago, Michael Lynch, MD, an internist from Fresno, Calif., took the plunge and invested in an electronic medical record system.

After several months of using his new system, he identified some glitches that soon became major problems. Adding to the frustration was the lack of sympathy he said he got from his vendor when he called for help.

That included unreturned calls and "completely unacceptable" answers when he did succeed at tracking someone down.

"We don't have time to deal with things like this, and it's so frustrating, it's like someone in your house is working against you," said Dr. Lynch.

Many practices have found out the hard way that when problems are discovered, the vendor that once promised the sun, moon and stars sometimes can become suddenly silent and unresponsive. In some cases it's because the vendor has gone out of business or has been acquired by another company.

Whatever the scenario, the physician usually is the one left to clean up the mess.

Experts say there are steps physicians can take to wake up an unresponsive vendor. But they say the best move comes before buying a system -- making sure your vendor contract is very clear about what a vendor is expected to do, and when.

If you have a problem, experts say one of the first steps to take is to make sure you talk to the right person.

Sicely Donaldson, who oversees the health care portfolio for the Portland, Ore., office of the consultancy firm Point B, said it's a good strategy to work your way up to the person who has the authority to make things happen in the organization. Walt Zywiak, principal researcher for Falls Church, Va.-based Computer Sciences Corp., a technology services company, said ideally a point person will be identified prior to a problem arising.