Making
the (Joint Commission) Grade
UW Health Partners-Watertown Regional Medical Center receives
high praise from the Joint Commission for its patient safety
initiatives and use of the MEDITECH HCIS.
(12/21/2010)
As a Stage 6 designee and Most Wired hospital,
UW Health Partners-Watertown Regional Medical Center (WRMC),
has been at the forefront of health care I.T. for some time.
And the accolades just keep coming: most recently, the 95-bed
facility received high praises from Joint Commission
surveyors on the hospital's impressive utilization of
technology, to improve the quality and safety of care.
According to Tim Strauch, director of information systems at
WRMC, Joint Commission surveyors paid special attention to
the hospital's MEDITECH Health Care Information System (HCIS).
"The Joint Commission was very impressed with the level
of technology we've been using, considering our small size,"
says Strauch. "Compared to nine or ten years ago, it
seems like the Joint Commission has come a long way in
recognizing the important role technology plays in
maintaining patient safety. We are proud to be praised so
highly for our use of health care I.T."
Impressing
Joint Commission Surveyors with Ease-of-Use
Surveyors were particularly impressed with users' expertise
and comfort with the MEDITECH system. "The Joint
Commission was very complimentary of how tech-savvy our
caregivers are," says Melissa Baillod, nurse informatics
at WRMC. "Surveyors noted how easy it is for users to
navigate around the MEDITECH system, and find the information
they are looking for."
According to Jennifer Laughlin, vice president of information
systems and chief information officer at WRMC, the Joint
Commission was also impressed by how well the MEDITECH system
fit into WRMC's inpatient environment.
"The Joint Commission knows that MEDITECH has one of the
most comprehensive systems out on the market," Laughlin
says. "In particular, one of the nurse surveyors said
that she had never seen an EMR used so robustly. The system
is certainly very accessible for caregivers across all our
locationsusers have access to patient information no matter
where they are across the continuum."
With patient data available at care teams' fingertips,
Laughlin feels that WRMC's MEDITECH system is providing
clinicians with the clinical decision support tools needed to
meet the hospital's ambitious patient safety initiatives.
"It is a major safety concern when data is entered on
paper--the possibility of missing or lost information can
easily compromise patient care," she says. "However,
having data securely stored in our EMR ensures that our care
teams always have the most up-to-date status on their
patients. We have a lot more peace of mind because we use the
MEDITECH system."
Improving
Quality and the Patient Experience
WRMC's recent Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE) go-LIVE
is the latest example of the hospital's commitment to using
technology for delivering the safest care possible. "Now
that our physicians' orders are entered on-line, we are able
to more effectively track and verify all requested orders,"
says Jackie Brunk, nurse at WRMC. "We credit the
dedication from our physician champions and super users, who
took the time to build the templates and order sets that are
now widely used by our clinicians."
With all the recent success WRMC is having with its MEDITECH
solution, it is no surprise that even the hospital's patients
are catching on to the benefits of a comprehensive EHR.
"Our patients rave about the care they receive at WRMC,
which I feel is at least partly due to our MEDITECH system,"
says Strauch. "One patient specifically took notice of
how their information followed them from the clinic to the
hospital. It is so rewarding to hear how our patients notice
and appreciate the continuity of care they receive. It really
does make a huge difference for them."
MEDITECH
Medical
Information Technology, Inc.
MEDITECH Circle
Westwood, MA 02090
781-821-3000
www.meditech.com