1. CASE STUDY ST. VINCENT’S HOSPITAL
BIRMINGHAM, AL • HORIZON CLINICALS
M C K E S S O N D E L I V E R S M E D I C AT I O N S A F E T Y T O
H I G H -T E C H , H I G H -T O U C H C A R E AT S T. V I N C E N T ’ S
AT A G L A N C E More than 10 years ago, St. Vincent’s Hospital cross-encounter patient data – the
in Birmingham, Ala., embarked on a aggregated records form a vast, paperless
technological journey to improve clinical and clinical repository. Caregivers can access
ORGANIZATION
operational excellence by delivering vital, information such as current and past
St. Vincent’s Hospital appropriate information to clinicians and staff medications, laboratory results, radiology and
Birmingham, Ala. in a timely, intelligent manner. Now, as other pathology reports, vital signs, input/output
– Beds: 338 healthcare organizations scramble to address data, transcribed documents, and patient
– Medical staff: 700 patient safety, reduce medication errors and demographics.
– Inpatient visits per year: 20,000 improve outcomes, St. Vincent’s is already
realizing the value of blending “high-tech, To maximize the value of the repository,
– Outpatient visit per year: 148,000
high-touch” into healthcare that works, St. Vincent’s added other McKesson
– “Flagship Digital Hospital” healthcare that is safe, and healthcare that clinical solutions, including many from
for parent health system, leaves no one behind. the Horizon ClinicalsTM suite of integrated
Ascension Healthcare solutions. Physicians and other clinicians
Challenges can now analyze integrated data from
SOLUTION SPOTLIGHT
any location on the 1 million-square-foot,
– Horizon Clinicals Birmingham’s healthcare market is highly six-building hospital campus using wireless
competitive, with 21 hospitals, numerous clinics tablets, PDAs, and computers at nurse
CRITICAL ISSUES
and diagnostic centers — in fact, more than stations and in patient rooms. The
– Access to patient information 9 percent of the local workforce is employed in information can also be viewed from a
– Medication safety the healthcare field. To fundamentally affect physician’s home or office using McKesson’s
– Clinical excellence the medication and care delivery process in the secure portal technology.
– Attracting clinicians region, St. Vincent’s sought to:
RESULTS Speed access to real-time and historical “The cure for better healthcare is access to
patient information by placing information information,” says Timothy Stettheimer,
– 1,500 PCs deployed across
at clinicians fingertips anytime, anywhere Ph.D., St. Vincent’s vice president and chief
1 million-square-foot campus information officer. “By making information
Proactively monitor and notify clinicians
– 90 percent clinical information available to caregivers anytime, anywhere,
of critical changes in a patient’s condition
system usage among medical staff we’re giving them the tools to help ensure
Deploy pharmacy and bedside bar-code patient safety and quality outcomes.”
– Wireless and Web-based access
technology to help prevent medication
to patient information errors St. Vincent’s looked to McKesson for
– 10 percent decrease in average
Provide physicians with electronic ordering leading-edge technology systems for every
patient length of stay and clinical decision support tools step in the care delivery process, especially
– 25 new physicians added in 2003 for improving medication safety. The
Answers organization recognized that it needed the
processes, technology and infrastructure to
St. Vincent’s journey began in 1991 with the “close the loop” on medication errors by
plan for a completely digital information preventing them at every stage: prescribing,
environment. In 1993, the hospital brought live transcribing, dispensing, administering and
its electronic medical record. And in 1996, with monitoring.
the implementation of McKesson’s clinical
data repository, the foundation was set for To provide clinically intelligent tools for
future technology initiatives. With every pharmacists to capture scripts, fulfill orders
patient procedure, test and order compiled and validate the accuracy of the medication
into an evolving patient record – which use process, St. Vincent’s deployed
now includes more than five years of

2. CASE STUDY
S T. V I N C E N T ’ S H O S P I TA L • H O R I Z O N C L I N I C A L S
automated dispensing cabinets, McKesson’s “By automating best practices and allowing
Horizon Meds ManagerTM pharmacy clinicians more time to focus on direct
information system and Horizon Admin-RxTM patient care, McKesson’s guidelines-based
medication administration system. Through solutions are having a positive effect on
“We may virtually eliminate medication integration with Horizon Expert quality at St. Vincent’s,” notes Stettheimer.
DocumentationTM (McKesson’s point-of-care “We may virtually eliminate medication
errors by making sure that anytime a clinical documentation system), communication errors by making sure that anytime a
clinician interacts with an order, among all caregivers is greatly enhanced. In clinician interacts with an order, a system
addition, St. Vincent’s uses McKesson’s checks that the best, most appropriate care
a system checks that the best, most Horizon Care AlertsTM (rules-based clinical is taking place.”
appropriate care is taking place.” alerts system) as the “guardian” of all clinical
data, monitoring and proactively notifying Results
caregivers of any health situation that needs
immediate attention or could negatively affect McKesson technology is supporting
patient care. St. Vincent’s goals for clinical and
Timothy Stettheimer, Ph.D. operational excellence by delivering safer,
The hospital is also in the final stages of more cost-effective care. Physicians and
Vice President and Chief
implementing Horizon Expert OrdersTM, other clinicians not only access information
Information Officer
which will assist physicians with order entry anytime, anywhere from 1,500 PCs deployed
and clinical decision-making by displaying across the campus, but more than 90 percent
clinically relevant information about a of St. Vincent’s 700-member staff routinely
patient’s condition along with evidence-based uses the hospital’s clinical data repository.
guidelines and treatment protocols at the point Stettheimer reports that the physician’s
of decision making. improved workflow and expedited rounding
has contributed to a 10 percent decrease in
Here’s how St. Vincent’s will “close the loop” the average patient length of stay (4.7 days
on medication errors. After a physician places to 4.2 days). And St. Vincent’s technology
a medication order in Horizon Expert Orders, has helped attract and retain clinicians. In
it is sent electronically to the pharmacist for fact, St. Vincent’s has attracted nearly 25
verification and review with Horizon Meds new physicians in the past year.
Manager’s advanced clinical screening. The
completed order is then passed electronically “Not only are physicians comfortable with
to the cabinets and Horizon Admin-Rx. With technology as a means to access clinical
up-to-date information available at their information quickly and effectively, they
fingertips, nurses administer the medication now expect and even demand it,” says
after verifying the “five rights.” St. Vincent’s Stettheimer. “We focused on McKesson
nurses scan for a bar code match of the because of its best of breed approach to
patient’s wristband and the medication. The technology, its ability to tie solutions
integrated system confirms that the right together across the enterprise, and its long-
caregiver is administering the right medication term approach to supporting clinicians in all
to the right patient at the right time in the environments. Through the partnership,
right dose and right route. After the medication we’ve been able to meet our goal of
is administered, the EMR is updated across all providing excellent clinical care.”
clinical systems for any necessary review or
monitoring.
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