MU Health Care wins global HIMSS Enterprise Nicholas E. Davies Award of Excellence

University of Missouri Health Care has received the global HIMSS Enterprise Nicholas E. Davies Award of Excellence for health care technology innovations that are improving patient outcomes.

HIMSS — which stands for the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society — is a global not-for-profit organization focused on better health through use of information technology. Since 1994, the Davies Awards program has promoted electronic health record-enabled improvement in patient outcomes through the sharing of case studies and lessons learned across a wide range of health care efforts.

"At MU Health Care, we know that better health is a journey in which technology plays a bigger role than it ever has before," said Mitch Wasden, chief executive officer and chief operating officer of MU Health Care. "That's why we're committed to using technology to inform and transform how we care for our patients. We're proud that this commitment has placed MU Health Care among a handful of health systems to earn the prestigious HIMSS Davies Award this year."

In partnership with the Tiger Institute for Health Innovation, MU Health Care submitted four case studies to demonstrate a robust use of information technology to improve patient care:
•Case study No. 1 demonstrated a return on investment throughout MU Health Care operations such as medication administration, population health management and emergency department efficiency.
•Case study No. 2 demonstrated a 25 percent reduction in the number of catheter-associated urinary tract infections at MU Health Care.
•Case study No. 3 used health information technology to improve communications, minimize delays and streamline the process for operating room starting procedures.
•Case study No. 4 ensured that data captured by various medical devices was accurately and efficiently integrated into a patient's electronic medical record.

"Earning a HIMSS Davies Award is no small task," said Bryan Bliven, chief information officer at MU Health Care and executive director of the Tiger Institute. "Receiving this award validates our emphasis on using and developing information technology solutions to maximize patient care."

Davies Awards represent the highest level of achievement for electronic medical records excellence that HIMSS offers. The award is open only to organizations that have achieved HIMSS Analytics Stage 6 or Stage 7 designation for advanced electronic medical records. MU Health Care achieved Stage 7 designation in November 2013 for its transition from paper to electronic patient records in outpatient clinics.

MU Health Care has reached several milestones in the adoption of information technology to improve patient care. In July, MU Health Care was recognized for the fifth consecutive year as one of the nation's "Most Wired" health systems in the 2015 Most Wired Survey by the American Hospital Association.

In February, MU Health Care gave patients the ability to view physician notes online after a visit. The notes include clinical observations, diagnostic test results and other details of a patient's care, which are automatically synced with the MU Healthe patient portal. The portal is an online secure tool that allows patients to manage appointments, securely message providers, request prescription refills, access immunization history and more. In August 2014, MU Health Care became the first academic medical center and the ninth health system in the country to meet federal Stage 2 "meaningful use" standards for its adoption of medical information technology to improve patient care.