Atlantic Health:Creates a Fully Integrated Electronic Health Record with Advanced Technologies

Case Study Challenges When Linda Reed, RN, MBA, became the chief information officer in 2004, she quickly identified gaps in Atlantic Health’s clinical application infrastructure. “We needed to significantly expand our clinical offering to support the... More

Case Study Challenges When Linda Reed, RN, MBA, became the chief information officer in 2004, she quickly identified gaps in Atlantic Health’s clinical application infrastructure. “We needed to significantly expand our clinical offering to support the higher level of care our patients expect and to enable us to remain competitive,” notes Reed. “And while our patient safety record was good, we wanted to do more. ” Objectives included creating an integrated EHR for every patient, with patient information accessible to authorized caregivers anytime, anywhere. The organization also wanted to standardize clinical processes, provide caregivers with clinical decision support, and better measure and enhance patient outcomes. Atlantic Health created its first application-based strategic plan, with medication and patient safety improvement topping the list. “Our No. 1 goal is patient safety,” says Trish O’Keefe, RN, chief nursing officer, Morristown Memorial. “We focused on performance an Less