Two HMC hospitals receive top accreditation

Two Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) facilities, the Heart Hospital and the National Centre for Cancer Care and Research (NCCCR), have been recognised for meeting an international benchmark for the use of advanced IT to improve patient care.
The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Analytics recently announced that the two HMC facilities have achieved Qatar’s first HIMSS Analytics Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) Stage 6 distinction.
“The HIMSS Analytics Stage 6 accreditation demonstrates that electronic physician documentation has been installed throughout the entire hospital with structured documentation templates – allowing physicians to ‘point-and-click’ from a standardised selection of options that facilitate future reporting and data analysis. We have a clinical decision support system, and closed loop medication administration, which contributes toward the delivery of safer and more effective patient care,” said professor William McKenna, medical director and CEO of the Heart Hospital.
The HIMSS Analytics Stage 6 achievement reflects years of hard work and dedication to improving patient care and business processes, made possible by HMC’s system wide adoption of Cerner Millennium’s electronic health record.
“Working with Cerner, the team has embraced the technology of the clinical information system which enhances patient safety and improves the efficiency of care delivery. We also thank our patients and their families for their willingness to work with us during the pre- and post-implementation phases of our new advanced healthcare systems,” said Prof Alexander Knuth, medical director and CEO of the NCCCR.
HIMSS Analytics developed the EMRAM as a methodology for evaluating the progress and impact of electronic medical record systems for hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database. There are eight stages (0 – 7) that measure a hospital’s implementation and utilisation of information technology applications.
Hospitals can track and review their progress in completing each stage as they proceed towards the ultimate goal of reaching Stage 7 which represents an advanced electronic patient record environment that delivers safety and efficiency improvements.
Dr Abdul Wahab al-Musleh, HMC’s deputy CMO for Clinical Information Systems said, “Through effectively using Cerner Millennium, digital progress will transform the way care is delivered to our patients. With more complete patient information, our clinicians will improve their ability to make well-informed treatment decisions even more quickly and safely.”
“Cerner Millennium produced savings in several areas, including medication entry. A primary benefit of the Computer Physician Order Entry is that it can help reduce errors, such as those related to illegible handwriting, transcription of medication orders and adverse drug events. Over the next year, with the continued use of the same, we expect to continue saving lives while lowering costs,” added Dr al-Musleh.