By Wendy Grafius,
Since 2005, HIMSS Analytics’ EMR Adoption ModelSM (EMRAM) has tracked the adoption of EMR applications within hospitals and health systems across the U.S. Institutions work to complete the 8 stages (0 – 7), with the goal of reaching Stage 7: an environment where paper charts are no longer used.
The two hospitals of Naples Community Hospital (NCH) Healthcare System in Florida have been recognized by HIMSS Analytics with the Stage 7 Award, the highest level on the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM). This achievement represents a health system’s paperless, advanced electronic patient record environment.
HIMSS Analytics, part of health IT cause-based HIMSS, collects, analyzes, and delivers health IT data to its worldwide membership of individuals, corporations, and nonprofits. In 2005, the EMR Adoption Model was developed to evaluate the progress and impact of EMR systems for hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database.
“NCH Healthcare System is a top tier example of healthcare technology at work for the entire patient experience,” said John P. Hoyt, FACHE, FHIMSS, executive vice president of HIMSS Analytics. “From a comprehensive electronic medical record that has assisted in improving quality, safety, and efficiency, to a complete ’smart room’ concept that has helped improve patient and employee satisfaction, NCH is an example of where inpatient care is heading in the future.”
NCH is indeed among a select group. Only 3.2 percent of the nation’s more than 5,400 U.S. hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database received the Stage 7 Award during the second quarter of 2014. “The NCH Healthcare System is honored to be designated as a HIMSS Stage 7 health system,” said Phil Dutcher, COO of NCH Healthcare System. “We recognize that this achievement places us in the company of other leading healthcare systems that have also demonstrated that the effective use of advanced information technology materially improves the delivery of care for patients.” NCH will be recognized for attaining Stage 7 at HIMSS15, to be held in Chicago, April 12 – 16, 2015.
Serving residents of Collier County and southwest Florida, NCH is composed of two hospitals with a total of 716 beds, NCH Downtown Naples Hospital and NCH North Naples Hospital. Inpatient services include medical, surgical, cardiac, orthopedic, obstetric, pediatric, rehabilitative, psychiatric, oncology, emergency, and diagnostics. A member of the Mayo Clinic Care Network, NCH is an alliance of 650 physicians, with dozens of outpatient facilities including 19 physician offices. Recognitions for the Joint Commission-accredited hospitals include U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Regional Hospitals,” Truven Analytics’ “50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals,” andHospital & Health Networks’ “Most Wired.”
