Looking to enhance emergency department (ED) care by increasing documentation and improving care coordination and workflow, Abbeville Area Medical Center chose to partner with MEDHOST to implement its Emergency Department Information System (EDIS). Leadership of the 25-bed hospital was drawn to the MEDHOST EDIS by its easy and intuitive documentation, knowing it helps drive clinician adoption.
MEDHOST’s extensive reporting capabilities were also a key component in the South Carolina hospital’s decision. Reports will allow ED leadership to review quality measures, such as wait times, and be in a better position to adjust processes. Other reporting tools within the EDIS allow critical access hospitals like Abbeville to easily and accurately track physician standby time in support of their efforts to be fully reimbursed by Medicare for the aggregate time ED physicians are present but not needed to provide care.
“Robust documentation and advanced reporting capabilities within MEDHOST were key elements in our decision because the additional data will help us continually fine-tune operations to meet our care quality goals,” said Erin Stillinger, RN, emergency department nurse director for Abbeville Area Medical Center. “For example, the MEDHOST EDIS prompts physicians to designate patients for follow-up calls and then runs daily reports to determine who to contact. This will help us meet a best practice of ensuring patients follow recommended treatments.”
MEDHOST’s EDIS is also designed to enhance ED processes. Currently, nurses double-document patient data, but with the EDIS in place, they can complete triage documentation at the bedside, significantly streamlining workflow. The increased documentation and efficiencies will also help Abbeville attain better clinician communication and patient throughput.
“MEDHOST’s ease of use will help our nurses spend less time on paperwork and more time with patients, another quality goal,” said Stillinger. “In kicking off the project, we have received positive feedback, as nurses and other clinicians are enthusiastic for revitalized workflows and more accurate documentation.”
“MEDHOST takes pride in our extensive experience helping EDs of various sizes create efficiencies, improve processes and meet patient care goals. Our EDIS is designed to fit within existing, normal clinical workflows, which can lead to higher clinician adoption,” said Craig Herrod, president of MEDHOST. “We look forward to helping Abbeville Area Medical Center maximize the benefits that MEDHOST’s EDIS can deliver by providing clinician tools that are designed to fully support workflow needs.”
