Nebraska Medicine has reached Stage 7 on the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM), developed by HIMSS Analytics, the research arm of the Chicago-based Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS).
Nebraska Medicine employs more than 1,000 physicians in the Omaha region and represents the clinical integration of The Nebraska Medical Center, Bellevue Medical Center and UNMC Physicians. Nebraska Medicine’s facilities comprise of 676 licensed hospital beds and about 40 specialty and primary clinics, serving more than 500,000 patients annually.
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. There are eight stages (0-7) that measure a hospital’s implementation and utilization of information technology applications. The final stage, Stage 7, represents an advanced patient record environment. The validation process to confirm a hospital has reached Stage 7 includes a site visit by an executive from HIMSS Analytics and former or current chief information officers to ensure an unbiased evaluation of the Stage 7 environments. During the second quarter of 2015, only 3.7 percent of the more than 5,400 U.S. hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics database received the Stage 7 Award.
During the third quarter of 2015, only 4.1 percent of the more than 5,400 U.S. hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database received the Stage 7 Award.
Nebraska Medicine Chief Transformation Officer Michael Ash, M.D. says, “Achieving HIMSS 7 designation validates that we are using technology to provide safer, more efficient, cost effective and ultimately higher quality care for our patients.”
“We are delighted to achieve this milestone, showcasing our dedication to quality and patient care,” Nebraska Medicine interim CEO Rosanna Morris said. “Nebraska Medicine continues to dedicate time, talent and resources to the development and integration of our electronic medical record, in order to provide the highest quality of care to our patients.”
In 2012, the health system began the roll out of a single, integrated Epic electronic medical record (EMR) system, the result of an $87 million investment. The health system then introduced One Chart, an electronic health record (EHR) system to provide better communication between providers and patients.
“Nebraska Medicine has effectively developed its governance, clinical and business analytics, and disaster recovery/business continuity strategies in a way that helps to ensure process improvements are sustainable,” John H. Daniels, global vice president, healthcare advisory services group, HIMSS Analytics. “They are driven not by the information technologies they use; they are driven by how they can best use those technologies to drive improvements in safety, care quality, and cost efficiencies.”
Nebraska Medicine will be recognized at the 2016 HIMSS Conference & Exhibition on Monday, Feb. 29-Friday, March 4 at the Venetian – Palazzo – Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, Nev.
