Two Memorial Health System hospitals have been named among the nation’s most wired hospitals in the Hospital & Health Networks’ 16th annual Health Care’s Most Wired Survey.
The hospitals are Memorial Medical Center in Springfield and Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital in Lincoln. The survey is an industry-standard benchmark study that measures the level of information technology used in U.S. hospitals and health systems.
This is the second consecutive year that the two hospitals earned this distinction. A total of 31 Illinois hospitals were among the more than 420 Most Wired hospitals nationwide. “Our commitment to developing our electronic health record strategy is driven by our mission to improve the health of the people and communities we serve,” said Dr. David Graham, senior vice president and chief information officer for the health system. “Our efforts in this area further ensure our patients receive safe, high-quality, patient-centered care.”
Two-thirds of Most Wired hospitals (67 percent) share critical patient information electronically with specialists and other care providers. Most Wired hospitals, which meet a set of rigorous criteria across four operational categories, have made tremendous gains by using information technology to reduce the likelihood of medical errors. Among Most Wired hospitals, 81 percent of medications are matched to the patient, nurse and order via barcode technology at the bedside. Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital began bedside barcoding in 2002; Memorial Medical Center completely implemented bedside barcoding in December 2013.
Health Care’s Most Wired Survey, conducted between Jan. 15 and March 15, asked hospitals and health systems nationwide to answer questions regarding their information technology initiatives. Respondents completed 680 surveys, representing 1,901 hospitals, or roughly 33 percent of all U.S. hospitals.
Memorial Medical Center and Abraham Lincoln Memorial Hospital join an elite list of the national leaders in the area of technological innovation, including Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Graham said.
