Virginia Hospital Center to launch $14 million new hospital information system

Virginia Hospital Center will launch a $14 million new Hospital Information System (HIS) in 2009 that will utilize advanced information technologies (IT) to create efficiencies and orchestrate clinical best practices. The Hospital signed an agreement with Siemens Medical Solutions and will implement its powerful workflow-engineered health information solution, Soarian.

"Virginia Hospital Center is excited about our partnership with Siemens and the implementation of this new, market-leading platform that will improve patient safety and process efficiency. It's all about using technology to provide the best possible care for our patients from start to finish," said David Crutchfield, Chief Information Officer at Virginia Hospital Center. "This system is a perfect match to the sophisticated medical expertise currently in place at Virginia Hospital Center."

Virginia Hospital Center will deploy Soarian's clinical, financial, physician order management, scheduling, internet portal and health information management (HIM) applications, as well as a number of ancillary applications that support the Hospital's efforts to ensure patient safety and a positive patient experience. Drawing on a vast database of medical best practices, the HIS will be fully integrated with electronic patient medical records, giving personalized care the backing of a powerful checks and balances system.

Medication orders are just one aspect of care that will benefit from automation. Prescriptions managed through a computerized physician order entry (CPOE) system (as opposed to being written on a pad and then transcribed) will generate pop-up alerts for possible drug and food interactions, counter-indications with a patient's existing medications, and other potential red flags. In some cases, the system may suggest an alternate medication in light of the patient's medical history. In the pharmacy, robotic packaging of individual doses for each patient's medications will be bar coded and sealed. Prior to administration, the bar code is matched with the patient's, as well as to the original order, further reducing the potential for mistakes.

Expedited treatment decisions will be another plus for patients. The system's critical results notification function will ensure core medical staff is mobilized instantly (via email, pager, and cell phone) in the event of a patient emergency, or that referring physicians are contacted immediately if the results of a diagnostic screening warrant swift action. Radio frequency tracking will keep track of where patients are in the hospital and which services they are receiving at any given time. With digital archiving, physicians can access patient medical records and imaging studies from anywhere inside the Hospital, or remotely from home.

Virginia Hospital Center will also implement Siemens Pharmacy, Enterprise Document Management, Siemens OPENLink, as well as clinical specialty modules that include Soarian Cardiology, Soarian Emergency Department and Soarian Critical Care.

To ensure Virginia Hospital Center maximizes its technology investment, Siemens will provide end-user education to improve the skills, knowledge, and productivity of hospital staff, while providing tools to navigate government regulations, evolving technology, and advancements in healthcare processes. The implementation of Soarian places Virginia Hospital Center at the forefront of the national movement toward utilizing advanced IT to build a nationwide health information infrastructure.