HIMSS Analytics announced Erlanger Health System has achieved Stage 6 on the EMR Adoption ModelSM (EMRAM).
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 LOGIC.
Tracking their progress in completing eight stages (0-7), hospitals can review the implementation and utilization of information technology applications with the intent of reaching Stage 7, which represents an advanced electronic patient record environment.
Stage 6 hospitals:
• Have made significant executive commitments and investments to reach this stage.
• Appear to have a significant advantage over competitors for patient safety, clinician support, clinician recruitment, and competitive marketing for both consumers and nurse recruitment.
• Have almost fully automated/paperless medical records when they have implemented their IT applications across most of the inpatient care settings.
• Are either starting to evaluate their data for care delivery process improvements or have already documented significant improvements in this area.
• Have made investments that are within reach of most hospitals and recognize the strategic value of improving patient care with the EMR.
• Have begun to create strategic alignments with their medical staff to effectively utilize information technology to improve the patient safety environment
• Are well positioned to provide data to key stakeholders, such as payers, the government, physicians, consumers, and employers, to support electronic health record environments and health information exchanges.
Stage 6 hospitals also 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.
Erlanger Health System recently implemented a new EMR system for both inpatient and outpatient services. The change in technology enabled Erlanger to leverage a very advanced EMR towards the goal of increasing patient safety and care through interoperability, knowledge sharing, and analytics. With the new EMR, the organization has created a “One Patient, One Chart” IT environment allowing continuum of care anywhere in Erlanger’s six hospital system.
“We were pleased to receive this recognition from HIMMS Analytics for our continued efforts to improve our EMR,” said Kevin Spiegel, FACHE, president and CEO of Erlanger Health System. “This certification was made possible by each and every employee from all over the health system – from IT to nurses and doctors. Our team spent countless hours to insure that the process to switch to the new EMR occurred with as few issues as possible. They have been focused on processes and procedures to create the most efficient and correct reporting throughout our health system and continue to focus on improvement opportunities.”
“HIMSS Analytics congratulates Erlanger Health System for making significant progress towards achieving advanced health IT adoption,” said John H. Daniels, CNM, FACHE, FHIMSS, CPHIMS, global vice president, HIMSS Analytics. “Stage 6 represents a level of sophistication that can lead to innovative healthcare transformation.”