Ochsner First to Deploy Epic Genomics Order Integration
New Orleans-based Ochsner Health said its Precision Medicine Program is the first in the nation to incorporate Epic’s Orders and Results Anywhere integration with its Genomics module.
Often genetic results are received in PDF format and then scanned into the EHR. Many health systems are working with their EHR vendor partners to make ordering genetic tests and receiving results easier for clinicians. For instance, Maryland-based Frederick Health was one of the first to go live with Meditech’s Expanse Genomics module after launching a precision medicine program almost two years ago. Penn Medicine IT teams have developed a way to allow clinicians and genetic counselors to enter orders within the EHR and electronically interface them with an outside lab. The interface then transmits discrete results into the EHR, segregating genetic variants, which allows clinicians to make better informed clinical decisions.
Through Epic’s partnership with biotech company Tempus, which analyzes cancer cells to understand a patient’s disease at the molecular level, Ochsner physicians can now order tests and access discrete biomarkers within the patient’s electronic health record to offer personalized cancer treatment options.
“This integration greatly enriches the precision care we provide to patients with cancer,” said Marc Matrana, M.D., medical director of precision medicine at Ochsner Health, in a statement. “Through efficient, streamlined access to discrete genomics data, we can determine a patient’s unique cancer and tailor treatment for the best possible outcome.”
With the click of a button, Ochsner said, physicians can order a genomic test to identify a patient’s actionable genomic variants and therapeutic options, including matched clinical trials. This information flows directly into Epic, providing a single view of the patient’s genomic and clinical information.
The new integration will significantly reduce the amount of time clinicians spend ordering such tests and reviewing results, enabling them to make near real-time, data-driven decisions, said the nonprofit health system, which uses Epic as its EHR across 47 hospitals and more than 300 health and urgent care centers across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Gulf South.
“We’ve found that these EHR integrations significantly reduce the amount of time physicians spend ordering and reviewing our clinical tests and reports, and as a result spend more time with their patients, equipped with the data needed to make informed treatment decisions,” said James L. Chen, M.D., senior vice president of cancer informatics at Tempus, in a statement. “We are thrilled to work with the forward-thinking team at Ochsner to apply this innovative approach in improving outcomes for their patients.”
"Labs have traditionally sent genetic testing results to providers in PDFs that look nice but don’t power precision medicine at the point of care,” explained Alan Hutchison, vice president at Epic, in a statement. “The discrete genomic results that Tempus sends back to Ochsner flow directly to patients’ charts where they’re actionable, not trapped in a PDF report.”
