SLIDELL – HIMSS Analytics recently announced that Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore is one of only 430 hospitals nationwide to achieve Stage 6 designation of the HIMSS Analytics Hospital Electronic Medical Record (EMR) Adoption Model. The designation recognizes the hospital’s accomplishments in implementing technology that has the ability to improve patient safety and quality of care.
A year ago, Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore was the first hospital in the Ochsner system to implement the new electronic medical record system known as Epic. Since that time, the hospital has effectively adopted the system’s use in all aspects of patient care. The patient benefits of this use include:
• A centralized medical record allowing physicians to work collaboratively on an individual patient’s needs.
• A reduction in duplicate testing thanks to information sharing between medical teams.
• Physician access to medical records regardless of the patient’s location, eliminating the need for patients to bring paper records from office to office.
In addition, the North Shore now offers patients quick and easy access to their own medical information via the MyOchsner patient portal. MyOchsner allows patients to log on to a secure location to view test results, make appointments and send questions or information to their healthcare provider.
“This designation affirms that Ochsner is truly a leader in terms of both health information technology and patient care in Louisiana and the nation,” says Chris Belmont, System VP and Chief Information Officer. “Using Epic effectively compliments the talent and expertise of our physicians, nurses and staff as they provide exceptional care to our patients.”
“The Epic roll out and the achievement of this designation are great examples of the tremendous team work that Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore exemplifies every day,” said Polly Davenport, Chief Executive Officer, Ochsner North Shore Region. “Hundreds of employees spent countless hours to ensure that the conversion was successful and ultimately a true benefit for our patients.”
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. Stage 6 hospitals 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, claims attachments for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, pay for performance and government quality reporting programs.
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About Ochsner’s North Shore services:
Ochsner’s North Shore region includes health centers in Abita Springs, Covington, Hammond, Mandeville and Slidell, providing access to physicians in a range of specialties. Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore is a 165-bed, acute-care hospital in Slidell offering a range of inpatient and outpatient services. Ochsner North Shore is a part of Ochsner Health System, southeast Louisiana’s largest non-profit, academic, multi-specialty, healthcare delivery system. For more information, please visit www.ochsner.org and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
About HIMSS Analytics
HIMSS Analytics is a wholly owned not-for-profit subsidiary of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). The company collects and analyzes healthcare data related to IT processes and environments, products, IS department composition and costs, IS department management metrics, healthcare trends and purchase-related decisions. HIMSS Analytics delivers high quality data and analytical expertise to healthcare delivery organizations, healthcare IT companies, state governments, financial companies, pharmaceutical companies, and consulting firms. Visit www.himssanalytics.org/ for more information.
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