Many
smaller health care facilities are now achieving big things with the
help of information technology. MEDITECH customer Georgetown
Hospital System (Georgetown, S.C.) is one such organization that has
surpassed all expectations and is being recognized for its
innovative approaches to health care. Georgetown was recently
named to H&HN's Most Wired - Small and Rural list for the second
year in a row, and according to CEO Bruce P. Bailey, this is just
the beginning of the site's journey toward providing the best level
of care through the most advanced technologies.
"We
are extremely proud of receiving this national award for the second
time. This designation demonstrates Georgetown Hospital System's
overall commitment to health care technology, which continues to be
a critical component of our health care delivery system," says
Bailey. "The quest for improved technology and the continued
delivery of individual, personalized care should be very reassuring
to our community and our patients."
Bailey credits the organization's progressive approach to the
MEDITECH implementation and its ability to follow through on
decisions as key reasons why Georgetown received one of the highest
scores on the Most Wired - Small and Rural list. The hospital
system is comprised of two acute care facilities, Georgetown
Memorial Hospital and Waccamaw Community Hospital.
"We
implemented MEDITECH's Advanced Clinicals early on to take full
advantage of the functionality," says Gary Praznik, chief
information officer at Georgetown. "For example, we implemented
Provider Order Management (POM) instead of Order Entry, because we
planned on having our doctors and nurses use CPOE as part of our
strategic planning. Currently, our nurses are very comfortable using
POM, while our doctors will begin using it once the Emergency
Department functionality is implemented."
Mobile devices and a wireless infrastructure also garnered
Georgetown the attention it needed to score high on the survey. The
organization plans to continue with its integrated approach by
implementing MEDITECH's Emergency Department Management, Bedside
Medication Verification, and Authorization and Referral Management
into its core HCIS. We look forward to hearing more great things
about Georgetown in the future!