Categorized | Health

HIMSS Analytics honors HMC with Stage 6 recognition

MEDIA RELEASE

HIMSS Analytics has recognized Hilo Medical Center for achieving Stage 6 on the Electronic Medical Record Adoption ModelSM (EMRAM).

As the first public hospital in Hawaii Health Systems Corporation to implement an EMR in May 2010, Hilo Medical Center is now working toward accomplishing the seventh and final stage.

HIMSS Analytics developed the EMR Adoption Model in 2005 as a methodology for evaluating the progress and impact of electronic medical record systems for hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database.

Tracking their progress in completing eight stages (0-7), hospitals can review the implementation and utilization of information technology applications with the intent of reaching Stage 7, which represents an advanced electronic patient record environment.

Stage 6 hospitals:

* Have made significant executive commitments and investments to reach this stage

* Appear to have a significant advantage over competitors for patient safety, clinician support, clinician recruitment, and competitive marketing for both consumers and nurse recruitment

* Have almost fully automated/paperless medical records when they have implemented their IT applications across most of the inpatient care settings

* Are either starting to evaluate their data for care delivery process improvements or have already documented significant improvements in this area

* Have made investments that are within reach of most hospitals and recognize the strategic value of improving patient care with the EMR

* Have begun to create strategic alignments with their medical staff to effectively utilize information technology to improve the patient safety environment

* Are well positioned to provide data to key stakeholders, such as payers, the government, physicians, consumers, and employers, to support electronic health record environments and health information exchanges.

Stage 6 hospitals also have achieved a significant advancement in their IT capabilities that positions them to successfully address many of the current industry transformations, such as meaningful use criteria in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), claims attachments for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, pay for performance, and government quality reporting programs.

On May 1, 2010, HMC transitioned to an EMR system aimed at improving patient care and safety and the hospital’s financial performance. The EMR system, named HealthConnect, was developed by MEDITECH.

It enables the hospital to connect electronically with internal and external physicians and other service providers to ensure the best possible care for hospital patients.

The system also streamlines operational activities to improve efficiencies, which translates into better collections and more timely reimbursements from insurance and government providers.

Throughout the transition, over 800 employees completed training and all physicians with hospital privileges attended the HealthConnect training classes.

Physicians now have around the clock access to the patient record including digitally stored Radiological images like x-rays, CT scans and MRIs, dictated reports, laboratory test results, medical orders, nursing notes, medication, Emergency Department visit information, long-term charts, etc.

HMC achieved a series of milestones to qualify for Federal stimulus funds offered through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

HMC has received more than $2.2 million in ARRA funds for meeting specific criteria called “meaningful use.” Hospitals that fail to implement an EMR risk reduced Medicare and Medicaid payments as well as government penalties for noncompliance.

As of early 2013, HMC was one of two hospitals in Hawaii to achieve Stage 6 of the HIMSS EMR adoption criteria – putting the hospital just one step closer to completing the 7th and final stage.

“I would like to congratulate our HealthConnect team for reaching this Stage 6 milestone,” said Howard Ainsley, East Hawaii Regional CEO of Hawaii Health Systems Corporation. “We are one stage closer to meeting our goal of having a fully adopted EMR and I am confident that our team will successfully accomplish this task.”

“HIMSS Analytics congratulates Hilo Medical Center for leading the way toward health IT adoption,” said John Hoyt, FACHE, FHIMSS, Executive Vice President, Organizational Services, for HIMSS. “Stage 6 represents a level of sophistication that only 478 U.S. hospitals have reached to date.”

— Find out ore:
www.hmc.hhsc.org
www.himssanalytics.org

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