Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Serving Lincoln County for more than a century!
Registered nurses Kristi Finck and Megan Shepard with one of the three carts now being used at OMHC for the new electronic record-keeping system. They were busy this week, as were almost all hospital personnel, receiving training on the system.
As of this week Tuesday, Odessa Memorial Healthcare Center and the Odessa Clinic have converted their record-keeping to an electronic format. The move to computer-based records was prompted in part by incentives offered by the government programs of Medicare and Medicaid, which offered incentives to medical facilities making the transition, said hospital administrator Gary DelForge.
The software package alone comes at a cost of $600,000. Necessary hardware and equipment, education and training costs all add to the expense, which will total approximately $900,000. But before anyone chokes on such heady figures, rest assured that reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid will cover most or even all of the expenditures. Currently, the hospital is making monthly payments out of funds already received from those two government programs, Delforge said.
The software system is supplied by Meditech, based in Westwood, Mass. Over a quarter of the medical facilities in the U.S. using electronic records systems are using the Meditech software, including Coulee Medical Center and Lincoln Hospital in the immediate area.
The hardware includes various types of wiring and routers, as well as three bedside units on wheels that house a computer, keyboard and mouse. One of these units will be stationed in the emergency room, one in the long-term care wing and one in the west wing of the hospital.
The main advantages of the system, said DelForge, are that orders written by the medical provider can be entered directly into the computer, thus eliminating errors due to illegible handwriting, for example. All of the patient’s vital information will be immediately available, and any diagnostic tests ordered will be made available for viewing on the screen as soon as they are completed and entered, both lab tests and X-rays.
The clinic is also going electronic, but will use a different system, called Centricity, geared more toward its own needs. The Meditech system is based on hospital stays by the patient and therefore does not fulfill the needs of the clinic.
The medical provider will use a laptop when going back and forth between the clinic and hospital and will have access to both sets of records, as well as to lab tests, X-rays.
Clinic
The clinic is also going electronic, but will use a different system, called Centricity, geared more toward its own needs. The Meditech system is based on hospital stays by the patient and therefore does not fulfill the needs of the clinic.
The medical provider will use a laptop when going back and forth between the clinic and hospital and will have access to both sets of records, as well as to lab tests, X-rays, etc.
DelForge said the only concern he has heard thus far from the public is about confidentiality. He said the systems are designed to be as secure as possible and that personnel are being trained to take every precaution to safeguard personal data. They are trained never to walk away from the computer without closing down the current record, for example. Passwords are used and changed often. Even personnel with access to the system cannot simply look up anyone's information out of curiosity. There are anti-snooping safeguards in place.
Going live with the electronic record-keeping systems now, said DelForge, will give the Odessa medical community plenty of time to work out the kinks and streamline operations prior to the 2015 deadline imposed by the government. Hospitals that have not shown that they are engaged in "meaningful use" of the electronic systems will see reduced reimbursement levels from Medicare and Medicaid after that time.
Personnel
Some changes in personnel have occurred recently at OMHC. As was reported some time ago in The Record, physician's assistant Mark King will be leaving at the end of this month. The search continues for a replacement.
An occupational therapist has been hired to work in the physical therapy department two days per week. She is Heather Wagner of Harrington, and she also travels to Lincoln Hospital in Davenport one day per week and to East Adams Rural Hospital one day per week.
Also new to OMHC is Megan Shepard, R.N. who is the assistant director of nursing.
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