University Hospitals to deploy Allscripts EHR for 1,400 physicians across Northeast Ohio

University Hospitals (UH), one of the nation's leading healthcare systems, will significantly expand its deployment of Allscripts ambulatory and acute care solutions to enable caregivers throughout Northeast Ohio to collaborate for a team approach to patient care. The strategic agreement between the health system and Allscripts is expected to support University Hospitals' development of its Accountable Care Organization (ACO) model through which physicians and hospitals work together to coordinate patient care, improve quality and share in cost savings.

Under the agreement, University Hospitals will deploy the Allscripts Electronic Health Record (EHR) to all 1,400 of its employed multi-specialty physicians across Northeast Ohio, and provide an exclusive endorsement of Allscripts EHR for independent physicians affiliated with the health system's 10 hospitals in Northeastern Ohio.  University Hospitals will expand its deployment of the Sunrise Enterprise suite of acute care solutions at the new UH Ahuja Medical Center, a state-of-the-art hospital opening early this year in Beachwood, OH, and upgrade existing Sunrise deployments in seven other hospitals.

The health system will utilize the Allscripts Community Solution to provide a unified patient record that can be shared by UH-employed caregivers and independent physicians, regardless of whether they use an Allscripts Electronic Health Record or an EHR from another company.

"We are excited to expand our relationship with Allscripts, the right partner to help us deliver on the UH promise of 'one patient, one record,' which we believe will improve patient safety and care across the communities that we serve," said Mary Alice Annecharico, Chief Information Officer for the UH health system. "This agreement expands our investment in the health of our communities with a single enterprise-wide clinical record and a secure method of collaborating with independent physicians for a team approach to patient care."

The agreement with Allscripts positions the physicians and hospitals of UH to qualify for federal incentive payments for Electronic Health Record adoption available under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA). To qualify, hospitals and physicians must demonstrate their "Meaningful Use" of EHR, which automates many clinical tasks to minimize human error, and connects caregivers to each other and to labs, pharmacies, insurers and patients.

Agreement Reinforces Allscripts-Eclipsys Merger Strategic Rationale

Allscripts Chief Executive Officer Glen Tullman said the agreement with University Hospitals demonstrates the value of the recent merger of Allscripts and Eclipsys.  

"Our merger with Eclipsys was designed to help health systems like University Hospitals build a fully integrated network by giving providers in all settings – whether employed or independent – comprehensive, real-time access to vital patient information," said Mr. Tullman.  "We're proud that University Hospitals has expanded our partnership to deliver on that shared vision through our Sunrise 5.5 hospital solution, as well as our Enterprise Electronic Health Record and connectivity that lets independent physicians and UH hospitals form a truly connected community of health."

Personal Health Records; Automated Pay-for-Quality Reporting

University Hospitals will deploy Allscripts solutions to promote patient-physician communications and to streamline the laborious process of reporting quality outcomes to the government and other entities.

• The Allscripts Patient Portal. Patients can actively participate with their physicians and hospital to better manage their own health and wellness, including making appointments, retrieving test results, refilling prescriptions, and exchanging private messages with their physicians.
• The Allscripts Clinical Quality Solution (CQS). In addition to providing caregivers point-of-care clinical decision support, CQS automates the time-consuming process of participating in Pay-for-Quality programs such as the federal Physician Quality Reporting Initiative (PQRI).

Sunrise 5.5 Upgrade Strengthens UH Plans for "Meaningful Use"

By upgrading the seven hospitals currently using the Sunrise Enterprise suite to version 5.5, and adding UH Ahuja Medical Center, University Hospitals expects to qualify for Stage 1 of the federal EHR stimulus program, which took effect in January. All seven UH hospitals using Sunrise applications including Sunrise Pharmacy have met the Stage 1 electronic medication ordering requirement of 30 percent of unique patients and have exceeded  ARRA's Stage 2 medication order requirement of 60 percent of unique patients.  Overall, University Hospitals' physicians have achieved 87 percent CPOE adoption within three months of the activation.

"Allscripts has demonstrated that its CPOE system is capable of successfully managing the specific requirements for order entry and clinical documentation in our hospitals," said Jeffrey Sunshine, MD, Chief Medical Information Officer at University Hospitals. "The collaborative approach that Allscripts takes to the implementation process, combined with the success we have already achieved with their solutions, assures us that they will continue to be a great partner as we upgrade Sunrise in our hospitals and deploy the Electronic Health Record for our employed and affiliated physicians."