HIMSS Analytics has recognized Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC Children’s Hospital) in Orange, Calif, with its Stage 7 award for achieving the highest level of the association’s Electronic Medical Records Adoption Model (EMRAM). The EMRAM was created in 2005 as a methodology to gauge hospitals’ success with implementing electronic health record implantation. In the third quarter of 2014, 3.4% of the 5,400 hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics database received the Stage 7 award.
The CHOC Children’s regional health care network is affiliated with the University of California, Irvine and includes two hospitals in Orange and Mission Viejo, several primary and specialty care clinics, a pediatric residency program, and four clinical centers of excellence.
“CHOC Children’s is living up to its mission to nurture, advance, and protect the health and well-being of children. They have virtually eliminated serious patient harm events, and they have virtually eliminated non-ICU codes by implementing a predictive alerting process using their EHR,” said John Daniels, vice president of strategic relations for HIMSS. “Quality is seriously ingrained into this organization’s culture.”
Daniels especially drew attention to CHOC Children’s inclusion of breast milk in the closed loop mediation administration process, and encouraged other facilities to reach out to the hospital for its case studies on improvements in breast milk bar code scanning.
“Earning Stage 7 recognition from HIMSS Analytics acknowledges the dedication of our hospital, our staff, and our physicians to providing the safest and highest quality care to the children we serve. Eliminating errors and significantly reducing serious harm are virtually impossible without a good technology foundation,” said Mark Headland, vice president and chief information officer, CHOC Children’s. “In addition to earning Stage 7 honors, just preparing for HIMSS Analytics Stage 7 recognition was a gratifying experience, as it reinforced our achievements in developing a fully-automated care environment.”
