Ohio Hospital Adopts EHRs

CMH Regional Health System's ClintonMemorial Hospital has entered its nextimprovement phase with the move toelectronic health records (EHRs). TheWilmington, Ohio-based hospital has earmarked$18 million to install a range ofclinical, financial, and operational informationtechnology systems from McKessonCorporation. The systems, which includethe full Horizon Clinicals and pharmacyautomation, are designed to provide caregiverswith state-of-the-art tools for optimizingquality and safety while simplifyingprocesses and significantly reducing theamount of paperwork.

"To achieve our objective, we mustinvest in systems that help physicians,nurses, pharmacists, and other cliniciansto provide more informed, safer care.McKesson's technology will alsostrengthen our core business processes,from daily scheduling and managementof resources, to billing, claims management,and long-term strategic planning,"commented Tim Crowley, president andchief executive officer of CMH RegionalHealth System.

One of the hospital's main priorities isto provide physicians with secure, Webbasedaccess to patient information,such as medication orders, test results,patient charts, and diagnostic images.The hospital pharmacists will benefitfrom the automation solutions that protecthow medications are dispensed, aswell as a central pharmacy systemdesigned with safety checks includingdrug-interaction alerts. After drugs aredelivered to patient floors, nurses willuse handheld bar-code scanning devicesat bedside to guarantee the "5 rights"ofmedication safety—right patient, rightdrug, right dose, right time, and rightroute. Medications given will automaticallybe recorded in the patient's electronichealth record.

Another advantage of EHRs is a reductionin the hospital's dependence onpaper. Once implemented, the healthcare professionals may documentpatient care electronically at the bedside,allowing them more time with patients.The medical record can also be viewedby all authorized medical staff involvedwith the patient's care.