As functional medicine practitioners we have a lot on our plate. Managing staff, paperwork, and seeing patients are all extremely time intensive. In my practice I'm always looking for ways to make my team more efficient.

One of the most effective ways to optimize your team's limited time is to use an Electronic Medical Record (EMR). Integrating an EMR into your practice will enable you to spend more time with patients and less time managing your day-to-day processes.

But with so many EMR options, it can be extremely overwhelming.

So we researched the most common EMRs for functional medicine practs, simplified the information and created the following guide to help you find the best EMR for your functional medicine practice.

Here is a list of eight Best Electronic Medical Records systems most commonly used by integrative and functional medicine practitioners.

[signup]

Best Electronic Medical Records: Optimantra

One look at their website, and you will be immediately impressed. OptiMantra provides practice management software that can be used across all specialties but specifically specialize in Practice Management & EMR for Acupuncture, Chiropractors, Naturopaths, TCM, NP, MD, and Massage Therapists.

They offer numerous integrations, including one with Rupa Health and many options for ordering imaging, prescriptions, supplements, insurance verifications, and billing.

Key Features

• Appointment Scheduling
• Charting
• Compliance Tracking
• E-Prescribing
• Self Service Portal
• Customizable questionnaire and consent forms
• IV management
• Electronic prior authorization

Price:

$99+ (offers discounts to students, part-time providers, Nurse Practitioners, & community clinics)

Pros

• Useful for multidisciplinary clinics
• Invoicing, payments, and payment plans
• Customizable form and online patient documents with e-sign
• Direct integrations, including Rupa Health, Office Ally, E-fax, Fullscript, and many more
• Pay as you grow, no locked-in contracts
• Email and Phone support
• Free Trial

Cons

• Slightly higher priced for multi-office use

Best Electronic Medical Records: Cerbo

Cerbo is packed full of features allowing you to focus on patient care, streamline practice management, and communicate with patients in a secure, easy, and meaningful way.

Cerbo specializes in Practice Management & EMR software for Functional Medicine, Aesthetics, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Chiropractors. It is specifically set up for direct-to-consumer (DPC & cash-based) healthcare clinics.

Key Features

• Appointment Scheduling
• Charting
• E-Prescribing
• Self Service Portal
• Customizable charts
• Prebuilt Fillable forms
• HIPPA compliant two-way communications

Price

$19-219

Pros

• Sliding scale pricing
• Patient portal styled to match your website
• Easy sharing of lab results, handouts, encounter summaries, and patient-uploaded docs
• Integrations with dozens of commonly used laboratories, supplement companies, pharmacies, and outside specialties

‍Cons

• Expensive one time set up fee
• No integration with insurance verification or billing

[youtube]

Best Electronic Medical Records: Practice Better

Practice Better's streamlined process allows you to share your dietary, supplement, and lifestyle recommendations with your clients and save them as templates for later use. One of the best features (IMO) is their evergreen program option, which allows you to make passive income by selling DIY courses to your clients.

Although it was originally set up as a nutrition-based EMR, it has been adapted and well-liked by many Integrative and Functional Medicine practitioners.  Best for Nutritionists, Dietitians, and wellness professionals looking to start or grow their practice.

Key Feature

• Medical Billing
• Patient Intake
• Patient Portal
• Patient Records Management
• Patient Scheduling
• Customizable Forms
• Meal Planning
• Evergreen Programs

Price

Free- $135 a month

Pros

• Free "Sprout Plan" allows you to build clientele before being charged
• Easy to make passive income with their Fixed Date and Evergreen programs
• Customizable form and online patient documents with e-sign
• Easily add your brand, logo or customization within the software
• Integration with Fullscript and Zoom

‍Cons

• Limited add on’s
• Limited Integrations
• Best suited for Integrative Practitioners who don’t need lab integration, E-prescribe, or insurance verifications

Best Electronic Medical Records: Charm Health

ChARM EHR is a online web-based, HIPAA compliant, collaboration driven, ambulatory electronic health record (EHR), Practice Management (PM) and Medical Billing (RCM) solution that dramatically improves quality of care for patients.

Charm Health has many features including lab integrations, inventory management, analytics reports, and e-prescribe with an extensive list of pharmacies.

Best for MD, OD, and ND. Although they do have options for adding in NP/PA/ARNP/LAc on Provider Plans.

Key Features

• Appointment scheduling
• Claims management
• Claims scrubbing
• Code & charge entry
• Compliance tracking
• Customizable dashboard
• E-Prescribing
• HIPAA compliant healthcare messaging
• Invoice history
• Meaningful Use Certified
• ONC-ATCB Certified

‍Price

Free - $350 a month (with flexible options).

Pros

• Full service for larger practices
• Many add on options
• Flexible pricing
• Options for single providers and smaller practices
• Great reviews from many different types of practitioners

Cons

• Not originally set up for other Integrative Practitioners (but user-friendly and easily adaptable)

Best Electronic Medical Records: Jane

Online booking was the first thing Jane created, and they did it well! Clients can see all the services, treatments, and availabilities you offer and select from them alongside their preferred practitioner.

Personalize your chart with shared templates from other practitioners or customize your own. It also offers Integration with Fullscript, Square, Mail Chimp, and many insurance companies.

‍Key Features

• Appointment management
• Assessment management
• Billing & invoicing
• Claims management
• Client management
• Confirmation/Reminders
• Email marketing
• Employee management
• Gift card management

Price

$74 - $369 month

Pros

• Photo and video charting to track progress
• Built-in text expander. Auto populated billing codes and commonly used phrases
• Real-time waitlist with optional patient contact to fill last-minute openings
• Option to chart using a stylus and tablet (for those of you who are hardcore pen and paper note-takers)
• Class and group scheduling

Cons

• Slightly on the higher side for one practitioner
• Not as many integration options for MD’s, DO’s, NP, etc. as other EMR’s in this list

‍

Best Electronic Medical Records: Healthie

Healthie is a web and mobile platform made with nutrition and wellness provider in mind. It integrates many tools for a comprehensive client experience. You can follow patient data like weight, body composition, BMR/BMI, fitness tracking, and food logs.  

One of our favorite features of Healthie is its passive income options. You can easily enroll clients into a prepaid live wellness program or chose the pre-recorded/downloadable option to make money in your sleep.

Key Features

• Appointment scheduling
• Billing & invoicing
• Client management
• Goal Setting / Tracking
• Mentor/Coach matching
• Patient management
• Patient portal
• Program management
• Progress tracking

Price

$29 - $135 +

Pros:

• 2-week free trial
• Mobile app option for easy communication with clients
• E-fax
• Free business and marketing resources
• Easy to make passive income with their fixed date and evergreen programs
• Invoicing, payments, and payment plans
• Customizable form and online patient documents with e-sign
• Superbill and CMS 1500 forms options
• Direct integrations with Stripe, Office Ally, Fullscript, Zoom, Fit Bit, Apple Health, and Google Fit.

Cons:

• Best suited for Integrative Practitioners who don’t need lab integration or E-prescribe
• Not as many integration options for MD’s, DO’s, NP, etc as other EMR’s in this list
• No live customer service

Best Electronic Medical Records: Practice Fusion

Practice Fusion is the #1 cloud-based ambulatory EHR platform in the U.S., supporting over 20,000 medical practices in delivering better care to over 5 million patients a month.

Practice Fusion is best for small practices but has add-on options for larger clinics. Whether you’re just looking for an e-prescribing platform or a complete practice management system, Practice Fusion has the EMR features that you need.

The goal of Practice Fusion was to make an EMR that was simple to use, lower admin burdens, and provided seamless integrations with pharmacies, imaging centers, and billing.

Key Features

• Appointment scheduling
• Billing & invoicing
• Charting
• Clinical alerts
• Compliance tracking
• Drag & drop
• Drug reference database
• E-Prescribing
• Electronic prior authorization
• EPCS
• Faculty/Staff management
• Formulary management
• Meaningful Use Certified
• Medication history

Pricing

$149 + month

Pros

• In a national survey of over 22,000 medical professionals, Practice Fusion ranked #1 out of 480 EHRs
• They listen to their clients and develop features as needed
• Live customer service and training
• Online patient documents with e-sign

‍Cons

• Slightly on the higher side for one practitioner
• Not designed with other integrative practitioners in mind. (LAc. Health Coach, Physio, Functional Nutrition, etc.)

Best Electronic Medical Records: Power 2 Practice

Power2Practice is a cloudbased EMR tailored for Integrative and Functional Medicine Practitioners and works for all practice types, large and small. P2P offers a suite of services to optimize the business side of practices, so practitioners can work smarter, keep their books full, and become more profitable.

As a P2P member, you’ll receive a practice health report quarterly. In the report, your KPIs are compared to the range of P2P's highest-earning practices to help you learn where you’re leaving money on the table and how you can help your practice and patients thrive. The comprehensive report also supplies actionable insight, helping you develop a strategy to make your vision a reality.

Key Features

• Appointment scheduling
• Charting
• Customizable forms
• Integrated billing
• Compliance tracking
• E-Prescribing
• Self esrvice portal
• Voice recognition
• IV therapy protocols
• Before and after image tracking

Pros

• No long-term contracts
• Cloud-based: you own all your patient data
• Ongoing training
• Easy implementation process
• Online patient documents with e-sign
• Live customer support available Monday-Friday from 7:00am-6:00pm CST

Cons

• Not designed with other integrative practitioners in mind. (LAc. DC, Physio, Functional Nutrition, etc.)
• Pricing not advertised on the website
• Sales support is hard to get ahold of

Putting it All Together

With EMR's becoming more popular in modern-day practices, choosing the best electronic medical records that works for your clinic is likely a decision that your practice will have to make. Whether you are considering an EMR for the first time or making the switch to an EMR that better suits your needs, there are several things you need to ask before selecting one for your practice. Every practice is unique will have slightly different requirements and demands of the EMR they choose.

Of course, this isn't an extensive list, but it gives you an idea of some of the different types of EMR's out there for Integrative and Functional Medicine practitioners.

Have another EMR worth noting? Reach out and let us know of its unique features!