Client News: New Health Partnership Announces Board Of Trustees

 Source: Jewish Hospital & St. Mary's HealthCare News

Representing a wealth of knowledge, community leadership and dedication to Kentuckians, Jewish Hospital HealthCare Services, Catholic Health Initiatives, and the University of Louisville are pleased to announce their new system’s community board of trustees.

Bob Hewett, chair, said  “I’m excited to be working with such an outstanding group of community leaders to increase access, expand service, and get Kentucky ready for the future of health care.”

The new 18 community member board of trustees will serve in an advisory capacity until all regulatory and church approvals are complete.  They will then transition into a fiduciary role and oversee the new organization, establishing committee structures such as strategic planning, quality and patient satisfaction, audit and compliance, and finance, among others. 

At the foundation of this yet-to-be-named system is a common mission to provide the highest quality care to the most disadvantaged and underserved.  The partnership strengthens Louisville’s academic medical center and access to it by creating a system with more than 90 locations.   It aligns academic and community physicians into a medical staff of more than 3,000 physicians to serve Kentucky and beyond.

The board members are:

Michael Ades - Retired Attorney, Lexington, KY
LouAnn Atlas - Fifth Third Bank Executive, Louisville, KY
Jane Burks - Volunteers of America, Louisville, KY
Jane J. Chiles-  Meridian Chiles Advertising, Lexington, KY
David L. Dunn, MD, PhD - Executive VP for Health Affairs, UofL, Louisville, KY
Paul Edgett - Catholic Health Initiatives, Erlanger, KY
Robert Hewett-  Retired Utility and Banking Executive, Lexington, KY
Miller Hoffman- Hoffman Robertson Insurance, Mount Sterling, KY
Robert C. Hughes, MD -Senior Partner, Primary Care Medical Ctr., Murray, KY
Charlie Johnson CEO, -Immanuel Realty, LLC, Louisville, KY
Thomas Mechas, MD -London Women’s Care, London, KY
Robert W. Rounsavall, III -Owner, Dixie Real Properties, Louisville, KY
Michael Rowan -Catholic Health Initiatives, Englewood, CO
Adolfo Ruiz Sr. -Adhawks Advertising & Public Relations, Inc., Louisville, KY
Richard Schultz -Retired Advertising Executive, Louisville, KY
Gerald Temes, MD -Retired Thoracic & Cardiovascular Surgeon,  Louisville, KY
Elizabeth Wendeln, SCN -Consultant/Facilitator, Louisville, KY
Russell Williams, MD -Associates in General Surgery, PSC., Louisville, KY
 

Partner ProfilesJewish Hospital & St. Mary’s HealthCare (JHSMH) is a regional health network providing both primary and specialty medical care in more than 70 health care facilities with approximately 7,850 team members and 1,900 patient beds in Kentucky and southern Indiana. It has been nationally ranked in the top 25 percent of Medicare-certified agencies.

Saint Joseph Health System includes nine regional facilities (including Saint Joseph Hospital, Lexington’s first hospital, established 1877) across central and eastern Kentucky with 1,012 licensed beds, approximately 5,000 employees and 1,300 physicians on its medical staffs. Combined, the Saint Joseph facilities have been recognized 20 times as being among the 100 Top Hospitals in the nation by Thomson Reuters. 

The University of Louisville Hospital, established in 1817, is a 404-bed facility and the primary adult teaching hospital for the UofL School of Medicine. It operates the region’s only adult Level I trauma center and operates Kentucky’s first certified stroke center, first nationally accredited breast center and first hospital-based telemedicine network. Aligned with the hospital, The James Graham Brown Cancer Center offers the area’s most advanced cancer treatment with specialists working in multidisciplinary teams who have received national recognition for research and participation in clinical trials, as well as translating research into today’s medical practice. 
 

Sponsor ProfilesCatholic Health Initiatives is a national, nonprofit health organization with headquarters in Denver. The faith-based system operates in 19 states and includes 72 hospitals; and 40 long-term care, assisted- and residential-living facilities; and two community health services organizations. CHI is the nation's third-largest Catholic health care system.

Jewish Hospital HealthCare Services traces its history to 1903 when a group of prominent Jewish businessmen met and founded a hospital to provide health care for poor immigrant Jews and to create a non-sectarian institution that would treat both paying and non-paying members of the entire community and provide a setting where Jewish physicians could practice medicine, pursue research and treat patients. In the decades since its founding, Jewish Hospital HealthCare Services has grown into a nationally recognized organization that has contributed a number of medical firsts in the world, nation and region.

The University of Louisville is Kentucky's premier metropolitan research university. Boasting more than 170 fields of study in 12 colleges and schools, UofL offers its 22,000 students world-class opportunities in many nationally and internationally ranked undergraduate, graduate and professional programs. Through its service mission, the university is addressing the needs of Louisville and other Kentucky metropolitan areas with hundreds of partnerships in education, business and economic development, and healthcare. One of America's fastest-growing research universities, UofL is focusing on translational research that can move quickly from the lab to the marketplace.

Client News: Des Peres Hospital Qualifies for AHA Mission: Lifeline Recognition for Heart Attack Care

Source: Des Peres Hospital News Release

Des Peres Hospital recently qualified for the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline Bronze Quality Achievement Award. The award recognizes Des Peres Hospital’s commitment and success in implementing a higher standard of care for heart attack patients that effectively improves the survival and care of STEMI (ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction) patients.

Every year, almost 250,000 people experience the STEMI type of heart attack. Unfortunately, a significant number don't receive prompt reperfusion therapy, which is critical in restoring blood flow. Mission: Lifeline seeks to save lives by closing the gaps that separate STEMI patients from timely access to appropriate treatments. Mission: Lifeline is focusing on improving the system of care for these patients and at the same time improving care for all heart attack patients.

Hospitals involved in Mission: Lifeline strive to improve care in both acute treatment measures and discharge measures. Systems of care are developed that close the gap of timely access to appropriate, life-saving treatments. Before they are discharged, appropriate patients are started on aggressive risk reduction therapies such as cholesterol-lowering drugs, aspirin, ACE inhibitors and beta-blockers in the hospital and receive smoking cessation counseling.

Hospitals that receive the Mission: Lifeline Bronze Performance Achievement Award have demonstrated for 90 consecutive days that at least 85 percent of eligible STEMI patients (without contraindications) are treated within specific time frames upon entering the hospital and discharged following the American Heart Association’s recommended treatment guidelines.

“Des Peres Hospital is dedicated to delivering cardiac care that is among the best in the country, and the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program is helping us accomplish that by making it easier for our professionals to improve the outcomes of our cardiac patients,” said Steve Woods, clinical quality officer. “We are pleased to be recognized for our dedication and achievements in cardiac care.”

About Mission: Lifeline
The American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline program helps hospitals and emergency medical services develop systems of care that follow proven standards and procedures for STEMI patients. The program works by mobilizing teams across the continuum of care to implement American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology clinical treatment guidelines. For more information, visit www.heart.org/missionlifeline and www.heart.org/quality.

Client News: Botsford Hospital Ranked Among National Leaders in Quality and Responsible Care

Source: Bostford Hospital News Release

Botsford Hospital has been ranked as one of the top 100 hospitals in the nation in terms of quality and value provided to the community according to a study of U.S. hospitals just released by a leading health care consulting firm.

Botsford was recognized as a top-ranked Community Value Provider in the State of the Hospital Industry –2011 Edition published by Cleverley +Associates based in Worthington, Ohio. The annual report assesses both financial strength and quality performance of hospitals and ranks the information through a Community Value Index using publicly available data including Medicare Cost Reports, Medicare Inpatient Claims, Medicare Outpatient Claims and 2009-2010 Hospital Compare data.

“We were honored that Botsford received both the Community Value 100 and Community Value Five-Star awards,” said Paul LaCasse, D.O., president and CEO of Botsford Health Care. “Our CVI scores tell us that our hard work in providing top quality and responsible care has paid off when our results are benchmarked against that of all other hospitals of similar size and teaching status.” The Community Value 100 award recognizes the top 100 hospitals while the Five Star Award is given to those scoring in the top 20 percent of their group; Botsford is ranked with other medium size teaching hospitals. 

The Community Value Index assesses hospital performance in four key areas: financial viability and reinvestment in the facility, reasonable cost and charge structures and hospital quality indicators. The 2011 awards are based on 2009 hospital data.

Botsford Hospital is a multi-specialty community hospital with 330 licensed beds located in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The hospital was founded in 1965 with a vision of providing excellence and quality in the delivery of health care. Botsford Hospital each year cares for more than 17,000 inpatients and almost 60,000 emergency patients with a team of 2,400 employees, 400 volunteers and more than 600 physicians. A not-for-profit hospital, Botsford provided almost $27 million in community benefit during its 2008 fiscal year.

http://www.botsford.org/

twitter.com/botsfordnews

facebook.com/botsfordhospital

Events: 2011 Keane Client Conference HDTV Winner

Congratulations to our HDTV winner Erica Murray, Systems Analyst, Athens Regional Medical Center in Athens, Georgia!!!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by our booth at the Keane Client Conference in Newport Beach - George enjoyed meeting you!  If you have any further questions about any of the products and services Unibased offers, please contact our solution consultants:

George Giorgianni
800-489-6069 ext 163
ggiorgianni@unibased.com

Press Release: Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian Signs Agreement for Unibased ForSite2020® RMS Enterprise Scheduling

Unibased Systems Architecture, Inc. (Unibased) announced today that Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian (Hoag) has signed an agreement for the license and implementation of the Unibased ForSite2020® Resource Management System (RMS) software application suite, including the POCET and CASH physician and consumer portals. Hoag intends to use ForSite2020® to provide the physician and patient community with an enhanced customer experience that will include a streamlined registration process, 24/7 availability to self-service functions, and a one-call “one-stop-shop” scheduling process for all services and procedures across the Hoag enterprise and five of its institutes, which include Hoag Cancer Institute, Hoag Heart and Vascular Institute, Hoag Neurosciences Institute, Hoag Women’s Health Institute, and orthopedic services through Hoag’s affiliate Hoag Orthopedic Institute.

ForSite2020® will play a role in both the Hoag implementation of an electronic health record (EHR) and a health information exchange (HIE), linking physician practices, clinics, reference labs, imaging centers, pharmacies, diagnostic centers and patients. The HIE and other methods of communication with the community will improve quality of care, patient safety and healthcare efficiency. The Unibased ForSite2020® RMS enterprise scheduling system will facilitate these objectives as well as improve the coordination of patient care. The HIE will provide a platform for participating physicians to confirm patient schedules based upon requested services in an expeditious fashion.

Tim Moore, Hoag’s Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer, stated, “Hoag exists solely to provide the best healthcare experience possible to the communities we serve. Hoag has a long-term commitment in investing in our communities through enabling technologies. After an extensive evaluation process, we have selected Unibased as our comprehensive enterprise scheduling solution related to their proven track record, ease to work with, and commitment to our shared objectives.”

Phil Amelung, Principal Consultant for Unibased, agreed, “Unibased is looking forward to supplying Hoag with tools they will use to transform the way services are accessed and delivered at Hoag. With a project like this, everybody wins. Patients and physicians are provided more convenient access and a consistent “front door” to services at Hoag, administrative processes are streamlined so that service locations can focus on providing quality services for their patients, and many business service benefits are realized from enhanced and expedited revenue cycle functions.”

About Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian:  Hoag is a not-for-profit regional healthcare delivery network in Orange County, CA that treats nearly 30,000 inpatients and 350,000 outpatients annually. Hoag consists of two acute-care hospitals, seven health centers and three urgent care centers (with three more scheduled to open in Fall 2011). Hoag Hospital Newport Beach, which has served Orange County since 1952, and Hoag Hospital Irvine, which opened in 2010, are designated Magnet hospitals by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC). Hoag offers a comprehensive blend of health care services that include six institutes providing specialized services in the following areas: cancer, heart and vascular, neurosciences, women’s health , primary care and orthopedics through Hoag’s affiliate Hoag Orthopedic Institute. Hoag has been named one of the Best Regional Hospitals in the U.S. News & World Report Metro Edition. National Research Corporation has endorsed Hoag as Orange County’s most preferred hospital for the past 15 consecutive years and for an unprecedented 15 years, residents of Orange County have chosen Hoag as the county’s best hospital in a local newspaper survey. Visit http://www.hoag.org/.

View/Download PDF of Full Press Release HERE

Meaningful Use OnceSource Powered by HIMSS

Source: HIMSS Website

In its role as the leading authority on the appropriate implementation and use of health IT, HIMSS has developed the Meaningful Use OneSource to equip our members and other interested organizations to prepare for the Meaningful Use and Certification Criteria and Standards regulations. The Meaningful Use OneSource is a repository of hundreds of documents, tools, and links to other knowledge available on the Internet. Within this authoritative knowledge resource you will find everything you need to know about meaningful use. Meaningful Use OneSource has the answers to your questions on:

• How to meet the meaningful use and certification criteria
• How to receive the Medicare and Medicaid incentive funding and avoid penalties
• How to practically and successfully implement meaningful use in your organization.

All content contained within the Meaningful Use OneSource is vetted by content experts prior to its inclusion on the site, so you can be sure that you are receiving the very best and most credible knowledge available.

The Meaningful Use OneSource is a dynamic and living body that will be continuously updated with the latest research and thought capital. You will also find recently released updates on federal and state laws and regulations; updated Web links; new podcasts, tools, and more. Visit the site regularly so that you are always on top of the latest developments and fully equipped to implement and manage meaningful use in your organization.

Press Release: Unibased Debuts Significant Upgrade for Managing Faxed Physician Orders

Unibased announced the release of Fax Order Collection Utilization & Storage (FOCUS), a unique order management solution designed to automate and improve the current process of faxed physician orders. Part of the award-winning ForSite2020® offering, Unibased’s FOCUS streamlines the traditional faxed order process by collecting and electronically monitoring, sorting, categorizing, distributing and scheduling all faxed physician orders in one integrated system, eliminating the hassle of lost or missing orders and increasing efficiency – for enhanced coordination of care and patient/physician satisfaction. FOCUS allows hospitals to maintain control while reducing labor and lost revenues associated with searching for missing physician orders by simplifying the process with total automation.

View/Download PDF of Full Press Release HERE

Client News: Oakwood Donates EKG Units to Dearborn Fire Department

Source: Oakwood Healthcare System Press Release

The Oakwood Healthcare System donated five portable 12-lead EKG units to the Dearborn Fire Department on Wednesday, furthering a commitment to reduce heart attack treatment times throughout the Detroit metro area.

The units, which represent an investment of $165,000 by the healthcare system, are capable of transmitting EKG information directly to the smart phones of attending physicians, dramatically reducing the treatment times for heart attack victims. It’s part of a commitment from Oakwood to provide the equipment and training to paramedics throughout the 500-square mile area serviced by Oakwood.

“This is a huge commitment, not only to the City of Dearborn, but to the entire region,” said Jeffrey Beutner, Battalion Chief, Emergency Medical Services for the City of Dearborn. “This is a wonderful thing the hospital has done.”

Healthcare systems rate the time between the arrival of heart attack patients at an emergency room and when they can receive an emergency catherization—it’s referred to as door-to-balloon time. The national average is about 90 minutes. Since the new technology has been implemented at the Oakwood Hospital & Medical Center (OHMC) in Dearborn, the average is about 53—and far less if patients are transported by the Dearborn Fire Department, rather than going to the hospital on their own.

“We’ve consistently seen 30 minutes or less when patients are transported by our agency,” said Beutner.

That’s because doctors can make the diagnosis as soon as the information is transmitted to their phones, said Joe Murray Ph.D., manager of the Critical Care transport Team at Oakwood Hospital and Medical Center.

“By the time the fire department gets to the hospital, our staff is ready to go,” said Murray.

Beutner said the units would find regular use in Dearborn. The four ambulance units in the city respond to about 10,000 calls every year. They go on at least three cardiac runs every day, he said.

The Dearborn fire department has used the technology since 2009, according to Beutner. The new units will replace old ones that have seen plenty of use for the department.

“It’s been a great partnership,” said Dearborn Mayor Jack O’Reilly.

“It’s huge,” said Fire Chief Richard Miller of the donation, which comes at a time when many municipalities are operating under tight budget conditions. “This is a big help for the department and the community as a whole.”

Michael Geheb, MD, division president of Oakwood Healthcare Inc, said the project was a team effort from the healthcare system, the Oakwood Foundation and the OHMC Guild, volunteers who helped generate donations for the Lifepak units.

“It’s been a great collaborative effort,” said Geheb.

Murray said Oakwood hopes to provide the equipment and training to departments throughout the healthcare system’s service area this year. Dearborn has been transmitting ECGs for about two years now, but their current cardiac monitors are older and rapidly approaching their expiration. The new Life-Pak units in Dearborn will replace five-year-old machines.

“Oakwood is committed to this process because of the successes we’ve had,” said Murray. “We’re looking forward to getting everyone on board.”

Client News: Contra Costa Awarded $498,524 from Affordable Care Act for School-Based Health Clinics

Source: Contra Costa Regional Medical Center

Contra Costa County will receive nearly half a million dollars to help improve the health of children with school-based health clinics thanks to the Affordable Care Act.

The grant was one of 278 awarded to school-based health center programs to help expand care to students nationwide by the federal Department of Health and Human Services, which made the announcement today. Contra Costa Health Services, the Contra Costa County health system, received $498,524 to fund two additional school-based mobile health clinics. The funding was made possible under the 2009 Affordable Care Act that was co-authored by Congressman George Miller and strongly supported by Congressman John Garamendi and other House Democrats.

"This is yet more evidence of the positive effects for our community from the Affordable Care Act. Once again, we see this law working to improve the health of our community, despite attacks on the law from Washington Republicans," Miller said of the announcement. "Contra Costa Health Services deserves the most sincere congratulations on winning this award today. Their work in our community has a huge impact on so many lives and I look forward to seeing the health clinics in action."

The grant will make it possible for Contra Costa Health Services to provide health services to an additional 1,950 students annually with the two new 44-foot-long mobile clinics, said Public Health Clinic Services Director Sue Crosby. That means a total 5,000 children in Contra Costa will receive care each year through six mobile clinics serving schools throughout the county. The new clinics should be in service within the next year.

"We are so pleased to receive this funding for these vital resources that help us provide quick, affordable, safe and convenient health services to children who might not otherwise receive the care they need to be healthy and to be able to go to school," Crosby said.

School-based health centers improve the overall health and wellness of all children through health screenings, health promotion and disease prevention activities and enable children with acute or chronic illnesses to attend school. This method of providing health care has been proven to help keep children healthy, said Garamendi, who was California's Insurance Commissioner and Lieutenant Governor.

"Education and health together constitute two essential building blocks for happy, fulfilling lives and they help our children compete in the global market for jobs- to Make It In America," Garamendi said. "I applaud the Contra Costa County Health Services Department for securing the money for this valuable investment."

To learn more about the Affordable Care Act, visit http://www.healthcare.gov/. To learn more about HRSA's School-Based Health Center Capital Program, visit http://www.hrsa.gov/ourstories/schoolhealthcenters/ For more information on Contra Costa Health Services, visit http://cchealth.org/

Client News: Inova Loudoun: 100 Years of Promises Kept

Source: Ashburn Patch
Written by: Shannon Sollinger


Getting ready to lay the first bricks: Inova Loudoun Hospital CEO Randy Kelley, left, Board of Supervisors Chairman Scott York, Leesburg Mayor Kristen Umstattd, Middleburg Bank Board Chairman Joe Boling, Supervisor Kelly Burk, Chairman of the Inova Loudoun Hospital Board of Directors Dr. Martha Callihan, Janell Hoffman, State Senator Mark Herring, Mayor of Middleburg Betsy Davis, Mayor of Lovettsville Elaine Walker, Ladies Board Chair Joan Elliott.  Credit: Shannon Sollinger



One hospital CEO, three mayors, one senator, one former senator, a supervisor and one supervisors’ chairman, a bank chairman and just about anyone else interested in health care in Loudoun gathered July 11 at the front entrance of the Inova Loudoun Medical Campus on Cornwall Street in Leesburg and greeted the beginning of a two-year multi-million dollar project to bring the facility into the 21^st century.

For 80 years, from 1917 until 1997, when Loudoun Hospital moved to its new building in Lansdowne, this medical campus has been at the center of health care in Loudoun County, said Inova Loudoun Hospital CEO Randy Kelley.
“Today,” he said, “that tradition continues.”

When two doctors and a pharmacist founded Loudoun Hospital in 1912, Kelley added, they turned immediately to the ladies of the county for support. That has not changed, he said, and announced that the Ladies Board of Inova Loudoun Hospital has pledged to raise $1 million for the Cornwall Cares Campaign.

Dr. Ed Puccio, head of emergency services at the hospital, said phase I of the project includes a more than 3,000 square foot expansion of the emergency room and its trauma room, lab and radiology units -  for the first time since the ER opened in Leesburg, all 15 patient rooms will be private. They will be large enough, Puccio said, that if needed, a second bed could be put in.

Also included in phase I, expected to be completed in 2012:

• New laboratory
• New brick façade (which will match the brick work on the new medical office building that shares the campus) on the 1974 building
• Upgraded space for the Loudoun Community Free Clinic and Loudoun Child Advocacy Center, which will continue to occupy space donated by Inova
• Improvements to materials management, patient transport, security and the central plant

Phase 2 of the project, to be completed in 2013, includes renovation of the 22-bed Loudoun Adult Medical Psychiatric Services and addition of surface parking at the east wing.

“Inova Loudoun Hospital is mindful of the rich history associated with this site and the original promise made to care for the health and well being of Loudoun County,” Kelley said. “As we invest $32 million in renovation and construction to meet the emergency and outpatient needs of the county, we continue to fulfill our promise.”