AllScripts Still Good Despite Lawsuits & Ransomware Attacks?

Allscripts was founded in 1981 and is currently headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. After having been around for 40 years, Allscripts provides hospitals and practices with EHR solutions. Allscripts also offers patient engagement and care coordination products, as well as finance and analytics software. More than 180,000 physicians use the company’s products, which are used in 2,700 hospitals and 13,000 extended care groups. 

To figure out whether or not AllScripts is a good fit for you, you’ll need to ensure that your desired features are offered. Moreover, pricing and demo availability are also essential factors. Furthermore, reading reviews will help you determine whether AllScripts has all that it promises.

With that said, one often overlooked aspect is a company’s history. After all, you will be heavily reliant on your Best EHR systems vendor, and if it has faced lawsuits, you need to be aware of that. 

Luckily for you, this article will help you with all of that, and in the end, you’ll be able to decide whether AllScripts is the right EHR for you or not. 

Past Lawsuits Against Allscripts

Four medical practices filed a class-action lawsuit against Allscripts in December 2012, alleging that the company sold the “buggy” MyWay EHR and then discontinued it. It was thought to be a one-of-a-kind case. However, the trial court judge gave final approval to a consensual settlement agreement signed by the parties. This is the first lawsuit of its kind, and it has become a reference for future cases in the business.

In 2015, Allscripts agreed to pay the proposed class about $9.75 million to settle securities fraud allegations after the firm allegedly exaggerated its capacity to integrate its Microsoft.NET and SQL Server with those of Eclipsys following their $1.3 billion mergers.

Ransomware Attack Against Allscripts

A ransomware attack hits Allscripts on Jan 18, 2018. However, Allscripts has not let all this hold them back. They’ve continued to provide industry-leading services and have managed to maintain a loyal clientele. 

AllScripts Features 

AllScripts offers a slew of features through its EHR, practice management, and revenue cycle management. Most prominent amongst them are;

• Appointment monitoring
• Patient flows
• EHR Mobile
• Streamlined admin tasks
• Maternity care management
• Easy-to-use dashboard
• Mobile access
• E-prescribing
• Care coordination
• Care guides
• Data source consolidation
• Daily planning
• Clinical decision support

All this combined together help users;

• Streamline routine tasks: Allscripts EHR offers a comprehensive set of tools and capabilities, including e-prescribing, mobile access, and clinical features, to help physicians better manage their daily activities. In addition, clinicians can access around 800 care guidelines, including clinical decision support and a configurable clinical desktop, to help them improve clinical outcomes. Users can also utilize their mobile devices to access the solution’s most important features.
• Access relevant information: Users can simply control their company’s financial health without any complexity through the user-friendly and personalized interface. Clinicians can also use the system’s at-a-glance view feature to manage their practices better. Users may monitor multiple types of information such as lab results, visits, and therapies in one dashboard, thanks to streamlined workflows and daily planning capabilities. Professional EHR Mobile is an Allscripts service that lets users access pertinent data from any location, even remote sites. 

AllScripts Reviews

Looking at the reviews of any products can help us manage expectations. It’ll also make us more aware of any drawbacks, quirks, or flaws in the product. With that said, I’ve taken the liberty of adding a few insightful AllScripts reviews. 

“Good for an EHR”

Pros:

“What I enjoy best about Allscripts is that it is connected with our entire facility’s medical records. I’ve worked with paper referrals, medical records, and medication lists in the past. It’s so much more convenient to simply open a clinical desktop and have all of that information in front of me.”

Cons:

“I don’t like that you can’t look at your schedule when editing a note. It can be inconvenient and make it appear as though I have to click extra to get where I want to go.”

-Marie A, Physical Therapist

“Good EHR”

Pros:

“Reliable. It’s simple to use and understand. The flow of information between other providers and patients is flawless. You can be confident that your lab’s messages and imaging findings are getting to the right people.”

Cons:

“You’ll need to engage IT to generate or customize documentation templates. I like EHRs that allow users to take care of this themselves rather than relying on IT.”

-Kristen U, Medical Provider

“Out-dated and not user-friendly!”

Pros:

“I enjoy how I can see all of my labs, notes, and records in one place. In theory, it’s a useful tool for this purpose. However, because Allscripts is so ancient, it frequently crashes as a result of several tabs being opened.”

Cons:

“The Allscripts EHR does not support access to the entire hospital system. There are several buildings, physician offices, and departments at my site…but we can’t view anything from any other department for a patient who comes in. In addition, I am active in clinical studies and research. There are no faults or mistakes allowed in Allscripts! When trying to enter a lab order or edit an order, it does not let you go back.

Finally, Allscripts EHR crashes daily, which is simply unacceptable.”

AllScripts Pricing and Demos

AllScipts currently does not publicize its pricing structure. However, you can contact them and get a custom quote based on your practice size and requirements.

Demos are readily available, short videos highlighting the program’s functionality are available on AllScripts youtube page. 

Final Words about AllScripts

All companies, at one point or another, run into legal complications. That does not, however, mean that they are automatically irrefutable or that their product is terrible. On the contrary, AllScripts EHR comes with the necessary bells and whistles that a modern EHR solution is expected to have. 

If the quote you receive is within your budget, then AllScripts is an excellent EHR system, and you should go for it.