By Cecilia Nasmith

Eight years, an exemplary job of teamwork and ambitious fundraising plans came together when Northumberland Hills Hospital launched its new Epic clinical information system Dec. 3.

But it's not enough just to install and use it, IT advisor Bruce Pye told the NHH board at its April meeting – you have to maximize the benefits, hence the term Benefits Realization.

Pye listed quadruple aims to strive for – improving population health, reducing the cost of care, improving provider satisfaction and enhancing the patient experience.

“We are already seeing some tremendous value,” he said.

Patients are accessing their own records through the Epic MyChart feature, the documentation process is improving, duplication is diminishing. As time goes on, they fully expect to see more of these and other benefits such as fewer medication errors, lower preventable-readmission rates and shorter inpatient stays.

Epic offers more than just the system, Pye said. For example, they have a Gold Stars program that encourages excellence in such areas as staff productivity, population health, patient experience, and quality and safety. And there are other programs such as Efficiency Boosters and Physician's Well-Being Playbook.

Internal communications are much improved as well, and board member Beth Davis mentioned the Secure Chat function. Instead of a doctor looking for the nurse he or she needs to convey instructions to, or leaving written instructions that there is the risk of misinterpreting, the message that needs to be conveyed quickly is received quickly – and acted upon quickly.

Along with NHH, the system has went live Dec. 3 in a network of seven hospital corporations working together, and this partnership is another vital aspect. Pye gave a recent example of how it affected a patient transferred to the Hospital for Sick Children. The ambulance attendants had all the information they needed during the entire journey and, at the other end, the data had been conveyed in ample time for a thorough review in advance of the patient's arrival.

That network is expected to grow to include Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation and even the University Health Network hospitals.

“A significant mix of organizations in the province are using this product,” he said.