West Georgia Health System Continues Its "No-Fail" Journey with 6.0
(2/5/2009)

Last February, we brought you the story of West Georgia Health System (La Grange, GA), the first site to go LIVE with our 6.0 Release. One year later, West Georgia reaches yet another milestone, as they are now LIVE with Phase 2 of their implementation, which includes the Emergency Department Management (EDM) and Patient Care System (PCS) application suites.

"We are extremely pleased with the progress we've made over the course of one short year," says Jerry Fulks, president and CEO at West Georgia. "I can't say enough about the work ethic of our entire team, the extra miles they went to make this happen. I'm also appreciative of the MEDITECH staff and specialists who have helped us prepare for Phase 2. We would not be where we are today without their continued support."

Paul Perrotti, senior vice president and CFO, describes West Georgia as being on a 'No-Fail' journey to excellence. "Our No-Fail journey with MEDITECH is a tale of execution, transcending the technology itself," he explains. "The implementation of 6.0 is tied to our overall mission, and also serves as the foundational support for our rapid growth. How we execute our software implementation mirrors the progress we are making in all our strategic areas."

A Healthy Dose of Competition Helps Clinicians Bring Patient Care System LIVE
West Georgia took a "big bang" approach to its PCS implementation, going LIVE on all floors at the same time. A motivated staff was the key to achieving this ambitious plan.

"We knew our nurses would respond to the challenge," says Cinda Morrow, RN, clinical information systems manager at West Georgia. "When it comes to installing the software, there's a healthy competition—not just with the nurses, but with everyone at the hospital. When word gets out that one area might be pulling ahead, everyone else becomes motivated to catch up."

That competitive spirit extends to West Georgia's executive leadership as well. "We get motivated by hearing about what other MEDITECH customers are doing," says CIO Sonya Christian. "We like being first!"

The hard work invested up front has been paying dividends over the past five months, as West Georgia's clinical staff experiences the benefits of the new system. "The multi-disciplinary focus of the product matches the workflow of nurses and the other clinicians such as therapists who are involved in patient care," explains Morrow, who adds that the product is also helping the health system improve productivity and overtime rates in areas like the ED. "We have streamlined real-time documentation throughout the facility so there is very little duplication of efforts," she says.

The system is also providing West Georgia with a higher degree of transparency, leading to improved patient safety. "We are better able to identify and correct issues early on. There's no hiding (of mistakes) in an automated system, so care standards are naturally reinforced," explains Christian.

Transforming Care in the ED
The Emergency Department is an example of how process redesign at West Georgia has occurred in concert with the software implementation. The entire care process was examined, as the ED staff took a hard look at the best ways to deliver care. West Georgia's physician champions worked closely with the Information Services (IS) staff to tackle all the affected areas.

"They looked at everything," says Christian. "And they didn't talk about what they wanted to happen. They talked only of what's GOING to happen. Everyone had a real sense of purpose and determination to get things done right."

For starters, the EDM Tracker changed the way patients would be triaged and tracked. "Having that visual cue to work from, and knowing all the information is on one big screen has been such a time saver for everyone," says Morrow.

But the biggest change in the ED's process has been the switch from paper nursing documentation to electronic. "Our ED staff nurses have really stepped up to this challenge and have embraced the MEDITECH system," says Morrow. "The on-line documentation has improved accuracy through the use of complaint-specific assessments, which not only guide the staff in required care measures, but also provide the flexibility to add other interventions and better individualize the delivery of care."

The ED physicians were also champions for this new technology. They worked closely with IS staff to develop several time-saving features. One such improvement was to have the most pertinent patient information display on the initial screen as soon as the record is accessed. The physicians have also been very involved in the development of the ED physician documentation templates that will go LIVE in April. "The strong support of the physician community has been vital to the project," says Morrow. "They have partnered with us every step of the way and have contributed greatly to the success we achieved."

Results Extend Beyond I.T.
Perhaps one of the most surprising characteristics of the Phase 2 implementation was how uneventful it was for most users. "There was no sense of upheaval," says Christian. "The installation of both PCS and EDM went so smoothly that people were telling me that they didn't even realize we were LIVE with new software."

Perrotti said Phase 2 has also brought some unexpected benefits. "I am beginning to see what I call 'by-product effects' from Phase 2—things seemingly unrelated to I.T., which advanced our overall performance goals," he says.

One specific example of this was a change in how effectively West Georgia was deploying restraints during the care process. "Our restraint usage was always variable from month to month, and that's an area of great interest for JCAHO," explains Perrotti. "Right around the time we were wrapping up our Phase 2 implementation, restraint usage on the floors began to decrease and stabilize, and that trend has continued. There's a connection—we had been so thorough in re-examining our care processes, that we made improvements in numerous areas."

Seeing 6.0 in Action
West Georgia attributes much of their implementation successes to the committed relationship they share with MEDITECH. In addition to regular on-site visits and weekly conference calls, this past November featured a two-day site visit from a MEDITECH executive team led by Howard Messing, president and COO; Chris Anschuetz, vice president system technology; Steve Koretz, vice president implementation; and Michelle O'Connor, vice president product development. These leaders held meetings with their counterparts on the West Georgia executive team, and extensively toured the facility, including patient floors, the ED, and the ICU.

"I know it's a cliche, but MEDITECH truly is our partner," says Perrotti. "The interaction at all levels—from the chief executive, to vice presidents, to management, to development analysts and implementation specialists—has played in a huge role in our success."

Messing has his own positive feedback for West Georgia: "I'm so proud of what they've accomplished. Last year, I couldn't believe how seamless their Phase 1 installation was. Now, to see the complexity involved in Phase 2 executed just as seamlessly, 10 months later—it's a monumental achievement for West Georgia, and a milestone for everyone involved at MEDITECH."

The Journey Continues
But Perrotti says West Georgia's No-Fail journey is nowhere near its end. "Our region is expected to explode with growth and economic expansion; we're anticipating 20,000 people being added to our patient population by 2010," he says. "We're going to need to recruit many new physicians, predominantly consisting of Gen Xers and Millenials—people who were raised on technology. The MEDITECH 6.0 system appeals to these physicians and will help them meet the changing needs of our patients well into the future."

Perrotti also sees 6.0 as the key to West Georgia's long-term financial performance. "I'm going to be turning to the bond market as we look to expand and grow. The health care finance industry takes notice of how we use technology, and the role it plays in positioning hospitals for upcoming challenges," he says. "The most important thing I can show them, to convince them that we're ready for whatever may come, is our integrated MEDITECH system."

 

About West Georgia Health System
Serving the citizens of LaGrange and Troup County for more than 60 years, West Georgia Health System has been the foundation for exceptional health care services which now extend throughout West Georgia and East Alabama. West Georgia Health System and all its divisions are accredited through The Joint Commission and certified by the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services to accept Medicare patients. West Georgia Health System became the first MEDITECH customer to go LIVE with MEDITECH's 6.0 platform.

 

 

 

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