Wichita Clinic plans to implement Centricity EMR solutions from GE Healthcare

With more than 160 doctors covering 40 specialty care areas, Kansas' largest physician-owned practice is the latest to choose GE Centricity® solutions to help drive patient care enhancements and cost reductions.

“GE's quality and experience really stood out”

Wichita Clinic (Wichita, Kan.) plans to implement Centricity EMR across all twelve of its locations to help staff manage the half million patient visits the system averages each year. The electronic medical record will complement the Centricity Business practice management solution Wichita has been using across its network of clinics since 1999.

"The Wichita Clinic has long-been a valued customer of ours and we are extremely pleased that they are supplementing their existing portfolio of Centricity solutions," said Jim Corrigan, vice president and general manager of GE Healthcare IT. "Clearly, this leading-edge healthcare organization recognized the benefits that working with a single IT vendor could bring to their providers and patient community. GE's healthymagination commitment to reducing cost, increasing access and improving quality is bringing new focus to the healthcare conversation, and Wichita Clinic's comprehensive strategy for evolving their use of IT through an expanded relationship with GE embodies this same vision. Bringing together Wichita Clinic's existing Centricity revenue cycle management solution with our proven EMR will help them drive additional cost out of their clinic operations while realizing patient care enhancements and workflow efficiencies for their providers."

Wichita Clinic is participating in GE's Stimulus Simplicity™ financing program which combines highly attractive financing terms from GE Capital with a software certification warranty from GE Healthcare. GE Capital's financing offers 0% interest and deferred payments, until 2012, to align with expected reimbursement timeframes under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The GE Healthcare software certification warranty addresses a key barrier to initial investment in EHR technology by removing much of the risk around the soon to be defined meaningful use guidelines and associated product certification criteria. By pledging to seek achievement of ARRA-focused certification for its eligible products within the Centricity EMR, Centricity Enterprise and Centricity Business suites, GE Healthcare is standing by its customers through a time of uncertainty. Certification is one of the precursors to eligibility for ARRA meaningful use incentives.

"GE's quality and experience really stood out," said Wichita Clinic Director of Information Technology John Bissell. "This product will help us achieve our goals of advancing excellence in care for our patients and will also allow us to participate in global Health Information Networks. Not only do they have proven EMR technology, but GE's financing program was really attractive, as well. The multi-year deferred payment terms in combination with the certification warranty stood shoulders above what other vendors brought to the table. That's an incredible offer and GE is one of the few companies in existence possessing the breadth and depth to do it. We're looking forward to continuing our collaboration with GE, growing our system and reaching our goals of improved patient care through smarter technology."