UAMS to Improve Patient Care, Efficiency With New Medical Records System

By todd

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LITTLE ROCK – The University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) is now installing a new medical records system expected to improve patient care while providing a more efficient environment for managing care.


 


The new system will allow the hospital to operate with electronic, rather than paper, patient records – saving money through eliminating many paper documents and streamlining the process of ordering and managing patient care. In addition, the system will provide a safer environment for patients through a series of alerts and checks in the software design. The new clinical information system will replace a more than 30-year-old system with newer and more efficient technology.


 


The system will handle patient information for UAMS Medical Center, as well as the various UAMS clinics, including inpatient care, the emergency department and pharmacy. It also will automate clinical orders, physician and caregiver workflow, documentation of the care process in the record and easy electronic access to lab and radiology results, and provide a repository for online patient information with secure access by physicians or members of the medical team on campus or remotely.


 


The system includes automatic alerts for health care providers during the ordering process, a function that also improves efficiency by avoiding duplication of services.


 


“Implementing this comprehensive, integrated medical record system is another step in our ongoing commitment at UAMS to provide world-class patient care,” said Charles W. Smith, M.D., medical director for UAMS Medical Center and executive associate dean for clinical affairs in the UAMS College of Medicine. “Our goal is to improve patient care by utilizing technology to reengineer the care process, and to allow us to operate more efficiently and more safely.”


 


Complete implementation of the new system is expected to take about two years and will involve UAMS leadership, physicians, nurses and other staff who will be using the system.


 


“This new records system encompasses inpatient care, our emergency department, and pharmacy; automates our clinical orders, workflow, documentation and results; and provides a repository for online patient information to support both the clinical decision process and research here at UAMS,” said Kari Cassel, UAMS chief information officer. “In choosing this system, multiple demonstrations, open to all UAMS staff were held at UAMS and a team that included doctors, nurses, hospital administrators and information technology managers visited several hospitals where the system was being used.”


 


UAMS is the state’s only comprehensive academic health center, with five colleges, a graduate school, a medical center, five centers of excellence and a statewide network of regional centers. UAMS has more than 2,200 students and 660 residents and is the state’s largest public employer with almost 9,000 employees. UAMS and its affiliates have an economic impact in Arkansas of $4.3 billion a year.


 


UAMS centers of excellence are the Arkansas Cancer Research Center, Harvey and Bernice Jones Eye Institute, Donald W. Reynolds Institute on Aging, Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy and Jackson T. Stephens Spine & Neurosciences Institute.