YRMC going ‘paperless' for $73 million

So long, paper medical records.

Hospital officials announced Wednesday a move that will cost Yuma Regional Medical Center $73.3 million over the next five years to create an Electronic Medical Record (EMR) initiative.

The move will create 49 new jobs at the hospital, ranging from entry-level positions to a physician who will lead the program.

The move is probably the single largest investment the hospital has ever made, according to Gene Shaw, vice president and value transformation and chief information officer.

Although the transition is expected to take five years and millions of dollars, Shaw said, "The benefits continue to outweigh the cost. We know we'll be much more effective as an organization."

The EMR program at YRMC will also include prescriptions and link patient records from local providers who already use EMR. In addition, it will instantly link electronic records nationwide.

By 2012 consumers will be able to access related online technologies to locate physicians, schedule medical appointments, obtain testing instructions, check laboratory results, access education materials, pay their bills and contact their physicians as well as other providers, according to a news release from the hospital.

In 2009 only 15 of the nation's 5,000 hospitals had attained a paperless EMR environment for patient care, according to Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.

YRMC chief of staff Kamal Ahmed said it's gratifying to see the hospital take a leadership role with the EMR program.

"Access to timely information is important to health care delivery," Ahmed said. "The EMR will place YRMC above and beyond other hospitals in western Arizona."

Ahmed said EMR will help eliminate duplicate testing, as well as help provide visual education and visual interaction for patients.

Physicians will be able to use portable electronic devices such as tablets to help show patients pictures and records.

"I think it's wisely spent and wisely designed," Ahmed said of the cost for EMR.

Officials with YRMC selected Epic, a national vendor of electronic medical record software, to develop the program, according to Shaw. The decision was made after a 10-month selection process that involved hospital staff at varying levels, he said.

In addition, Shaw said staff saw firsthand various products that made it to the final rounds of consideration.

For more information about the open positions with the program, go to www.yumaregional.org.

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EMR TIMELINE

• 2010-2011 - EMR for Emergency and Pharmacy departments and nursing units; implement a health information management system to participate in mandatory state and federal reporting of health care information and voluntarily track quality trends

• 2011-2013 - EMR modules for physicians and hospital staff

• 2012-2013 - Computerized ordering of medical procedures and electronic charting for physicians; prepare Cardiology and Radiology for EMR launch

• 2013-2014 - Prepare Surgery Department and Anesthesia for the EMR implementation

Source: YRMC