Electronic Health Records (EHR, EMR)

Update: HIMSS20 has been canceled due to the coronavirus. Read more here. As part of the merger of five independent orthopedic practices to form Virginia’s largest provider of orthopedic and therapy care, OrthoVirginia, a large investment was made implementing a new electronic health record system. A survey gauging physician satisfaction with the system, however, showed an overall poor experience, which led the CIO and CMIO to work together to implement and show measurable improvements across a range of areas, including more efficient usage of the technology. Among the most important decision made was to use provider satisfaction measurement tools, to better understand the most impactful EHR related elements that drive provider satisfaction. A structured onboarding process, including an explanation of the organization’s culture, also helps sets expectations for what will be required of the provider to achieve EHR mastery. "The lack of a clear articulation to the providers about what the EHR can be is a significant and ubiquitous problem," said Dr. Harry C Eschenroeder Jr., CMIO of OrthoVirginia, who is scheduled to address the topic March 12 at HIMSS20 with co-presenter and OrthoVirginia CIO Terri Ripley. He explained there is confusion about what parts of the workflows are driven by compliance requirements and what parts of the EHR can be helpful. "Workflows driven by compliance often frustrate providers and may add little value to patient care," he cautioned. "A well designed EHR can orient the physician to the patient’s situation, teach the patient what is wrong with them, and what they must do to get better." He further noted it can also facilitate communication and coordination of care amongst the providers trying to help the patient. "Providers must understand that they bear a responsibility to master and improve their imperfect EHR for the benefit of their patients," he said. "They need to experience some wins in making their EHR better." Eschenroeder said some methodologies that can be used to successfully implement a continuous education program for physicians include offering “at the elbow” provider education and provider problem resolution based on a personal relationship between the provider and a provider support specialist. "In addition, EHR educational presentations at department meetings can help providers to understand that the EHR is not a dead tool, it is evolving, and their input is critical," he said. Additional methodologies could involve peer to peer teaching and support interactions in provider meetings, and teaching themes for the provider support specialists, so that rounding is more than answering complaints and solving problems. Eschenroeder and his OrthoVirginia colleague Terri Ripley will share their insights during their HIMSS20 session, “Physician Satisfaction with EHR: Is it Possible to Improve?” It's scheduled for Thursday, March 12, from 2:30-3:30 p.m. in room W206A.

Dr. Aziz Ahmet Surel, coordinator chief physician at Ankara City Hospital in Turkey, says clinical leadership, government support and financial resources are all central factors in driving digital transformation and achieving HIMSS EMRAM Stage 7.

Health systems can develop patient flow analytics, which can result in faster, more comprehensive care and a quicker release from the hospital.

Dr. Tamara Sunbul, medical director of clinical informatics at Johns Hopkins Aramco Healthcare in the KSA, says that identifying and training physician champions while planning ahead are key factors in a successful EMR "go live."

Remaining tasks include additional development of interfaces between the existing EHR, Cerner’s platform and the general IT infrastructure of the VA, which could run through the end of April, according to a news report.

The cloud technology vendor has made new CDC-recommended tools available to ambulatory and hospital clients, to help with faster diagnosis and continuous monitoring.

AdventHealth, the faith-based Florida health system that runs 50 hospitals and more than 1,200 outpatient settings in nine states nationwide, has decided to deploy a new electronic health record and revenue cycle management system from Epic – replacing its existing Cerner technology. According to reports from KCTV and Kansas City Business Journal, AdventHealth – which was known as Adventist Health System until this past year, and is one of the country's biggest non-profit systems – says the transition will begin next month and could take three to five years. "The shift is expected to take up to five years and Cerner is committed to working closely with AdventHealth to continue delivering superior healthcare technology solutions throughout the transition," said Cerner officials in a written statement. AdventHealth has been a Cerner customer since 2002, and with the technology some of its hospitals have reached Stage 7 on the HIMSS Analytics EMR Adoption Model. The choice to move instead to rival Epic was a business decision, driven by the need to improve provider and patient experience, AdventHealth President and CEO Terry Shaw told KCTV. "Our journey to become a consumer-focused clinical company requires a fully connected network throughout our entire enterprise," said Shaw. "Connecting our network with a robust, integrated health record platform will give our caregivers access to the clinical information they need at the point of care and ultimately advance our consumer promises through a more seamless experience for those we serve." Twitter: @MikeMiliardHITN Email the writer: mike.miliard@himssmedia.com Healthcare IT News is a publication of HIMSS Media.

Kalle Killar, deputy secretary general at the Ministry of Social Affairs in Estonia, says that citizens have full access to how their data is used in managing their healthcare which helps ensure trust remains high between the stakeholders.

The news comes as the death toll in mainland China is reported to have exceeded 1,000. 

Dr. Salman Al-Sabah, president of the Kuwait Association of Surgeons, says his country wants to learn from others and collaborate effectively with all stakeholders, which offers huge potential as the country moves toward a national electronic health record.