EHR data migration: in-house or hire a service?
Who should run your EHR data migration depends on how much data you have, how many systems and record types are involved, and how much staff time you can give the project. A small practice with a clean export and a new EHR that imports it may handle the move with the new system's own tools. A practice with years of notes, open claims, Part 2 consents or several source systems usually needs dedicated migration help. Whichever you choose, someone has to own the field mapping, the sample test and the reconciliation.
- There are three common options: your own team, the import help your new EHR vendor offers, or a dedicated migration service.
- The work is the same whichever you choose: export, map, test on a sample, cut over and reconcile.
- Decide based on data volume, record types, staff time and who will sign off the reconciliation.
Who can run an EHR data migration?
- Your own team. A staff member exports from the old system and loads the files into the new one with its import tools, re-entering anything the tools cannot take.
- Your new EHR vendor. Ask what import or onboarding help the new vendor includes, which record types it covers and whether it costs extra.
- A migration service. An outside team scopes the export, maps fields, runs a sample and the full migration, and reports on what moved.
Many projects mix these. For example, the new vendor imports demographics and appointments while a service handles notes, documents and open claims.
What work has to happen whoever runs it?
- Request and test a full export from the current system, as covered in how to request and test a full EHR export.
- Decide what to migrate, what to archive and what to leave behind.
- Map each field to the new system and decide what arrives as documents.
- Move a sample of clients and have clinicians check it.
- Freeze the old system, run the full migration and move future appointments last.
- Reconcile counts for each record type and keep the report.
The EHR migration checklist lists these stages in order.
When can your own team handle the move?
An in-house move tends to fit when most of these are true:
- You are moving from one system to one system.
- You have a small client list, and the export opens cleanly with the fields the new system needs.
- You have few open claims at cutover and no Part 2 records.
- Someone on staff has time to own the project and is comfortable with spreadsheets and import files.
- The new EHR's import tools accept the files your old system produces.
When does outside help make sense?
Outside help tends to fit when any of these are true:
- Years of clinical notes and uploaded documents need to stay readable and attached to the right client.
- Open claims, balances and payments have to carry over without anything being billed twice.
- Part 2 consents or other restricted records need to stay flagged.
- Data comes from more than one system, for example after an acquisition.
- The export arrives in a format the new system cannot import directly.
- Nobody on staff can spare the time, or the old contract ends soon.
How do the three options compare?
| Question | Your own team | New EHR vendor | Migration service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who maps the fields? | Your staff | The vendor's import team, for the fields its tools support | The service, with your clinical lead reviewing |
| Is there a sample test? | Only if you plan one | Ask the vendor | Ask for one in the written scope |
| Who reconciles the counts? | Your staff | Ask the vendor | The service, in a written report |
| What does it cost? | Staff time | Ask what the import includes and what costs extra | A quote, ideally a fixed price agreed before work starts |
| What is left for your team? | All of the work | Checking results and anything the import skips | Reviewing the mapping and sample, then signing off |
What should you ask before you decide?
- Which record types will the new EHR's import tools accept, and in what file formats?
- What will arrive as structured fields and what as documents? The answer depends on your export, as covered in what moves in an EHR migration, and in what form.
- Who on your team will review the field mapping and the sample?
- Who will produce the reconciliation report, and who signs it off?
- If you hire help, use the questions to ask before hiring an EHR data migration service to compare providers.
Frequently asked questions
Can we migrate EHR data ourselves?
Yes, when the move is small and simple: one source system, a clean export, few open claims and a new EHR whose import tools accept your files. You still need to map fields, test on a sample of clients and reconcile counts for each record type.
Will our new EHR vendor migrate our data?
Ask the new vendor before you sign. Import help varies by vendor, so get in writing which record types it covers, whether past notes and documents arrive as fields or as files, and whether it costs extra.
When is a migration service worth it?
A migration service is worth considering when you have years of notes and documents, open claims, Part 2 consents, more than one source system, or no staff time to run the project. Compare its quote with the staff time an in-house move would take.
Where does Ferry fit?
Ferry is a migration service for behavioral health practices. Ferry reviews exports from your current system, agrees a fixed price before work starts, maps fields and tests on a sample, then runs the full migration with a reconciliation report for every record type. Prices are published on the home page.
Plan the rest of the project with the EHR data migration complete guide.
How Ferry helps
Ferry migrates data between behavioral health EHRs at a fixed price, with a reconciliation report for every record type. Get a migration quote.