The Top 3 Reasons Your Practice Should Upgrade to athenaPractice v22 (and sooner rather than later)

As an athena user, your first reaction to hearing of a new upgrade is likely to wonder how it compares to the BIG v20 and Medication Management release last year. Thankfully v22 does not include quite the same workflow turbulence introduced alongside Medication Management. Still, you’ll want to know these important facts about v22 before you download the update, and why it’s important you don’t wait to upgrade.

1.   Regulatory Requirements: 2015 Certified Cures Edition

athenaPractice v22 is Athena’s 2015 Certified Cures Edition Solution which meets industry regulatory compliance. Practices and providers participating in MIPS (Merit-Based Incentive Payment System), UDS (Uniform Data System), or who are part of an Advanced APM (Alternate Payment Model) such as an ACO (Accountable Care Organization) are likely required to be on this certified edition prior to January 1, 2023.

If your practice participates in any of these programs, you will want to ensure you upgrade well in advance of the January 1, 2023 deadline.

 

2.   Possible Server Environment Upgrades

As you likely know, Microsoft Windows Server 2012 is nearing the end of its life in 2023. For this reason, athenaPractice v22 has been validated against Windows Server 2016 and Windows Server 2019. Organizations currently running v20 in a Windows Server 2012 environment will need to plan not only to upgrade from v20 to v22, but your server infrastructure will also need to be updated to Windows Server 2016 at minimum. This infrastructure update will need to happen before you can upgrade to v22. With a new software version often comes the need for newer or more powerful hardware. Given the time and expense of acquiring hardware, especially with a supply chain impacted by the worldwide pandemic, this is a step you cannot afford to drag your feet on.

 

3.   New Features and Enhancements

With any new version of athenaPractice comes new features, enhancements, and adjustments. v22 is no different. Athena has packed this update with enhancements to Medication Management aimed to reduce clicks in certain areas and streamline some workflows, as well as introducing adjustments to resolve common errors and issues seen by customers. FHIR API support has been enhanced significantly, expanding the ways in which apps (both patient and practice-facing) can integrate with athenaPractice.  v22 also lays the groundwork for support for Electronic Case Reporting, an exciting new feature that will allow automatic, trigger-based case reports to public health agencies. In addition to these new features there are nearly 100 additional enhancements aimed to improve the performance of the system, reduce interruptions, and implement customer feedback.

 

Time to Upgrade is Shorter Than You Think

Now is the time to begin planning for the v22 upgrade, if you haven’t already. Major upgrades require planning, preparation, testing, and training that can take months – perhaps longer if you require infrastructure updates. Don’t wait until the last minute when the time and resources needed for success are not available!

Med Tech Solutions has the resources and experience to help you implement a successful upgrade. Our experts offer athenaPractice consulting and optimization services, extended athenaPractice and IT helpdesk service and support, as well as managed IT and secure cloud hosting services. Contact us today!

LIVE WEBINAR: “athenaPractice 101: Are You Ready for the v22 Update?”

Join MTS on Wednesday, July 13, at 11:00 am PT / 2:00 pm ET as we review the new enhancements, features, and fixes to be found in the new release. Space is limited – register today!