University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics, Iowa City, Iowa, have been named a 2014 HIMSS Enterprise Davies Award recipient. The recognition goes to healthcare providers that have utilized health information technology to substantially improve patient outcomes while achieving return on investment.
“University of Iowa Hospital and Clinics have done a tremendous job of leveraging information technology to integrate efforts to improve quality and the financial bottom line at the same time,” said Jonathan French, HIMSS director of quality and patient safety.
UIHC realized a broad range of significant benefits by embracing information technology. For example, by using EHR-enabled clinical workflows and standardized documentation, UIHC significantly reduced adverse drug events and hospital acquired infections. UIHC also significantly reduced instances of venous thrombosis, sepsis, pneumonia, and other clinical conditions through the use of nearly 500 best practice alerts and analytics.
Moreover, as the result of improved documentation and secondary diagnosis capture, cost avoidance associated with improved clinical outcomes, and reduced mortality and length of stay, and incentives paid for quality improvements, UIHC has net cash flow of over $50 million from July 2013 to June 2014, attributable to the use of information technology.
University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics is Iowa’s only comprehensive academic medical center and regional referral center. “We are absolutely delighted with this recognition,” said Kenneth P. Kates, UIHC Chief Executive Officer. “The entire information technology department, in partnership with our outstanding clinical staff, has achieved astounding progress in delivering on multiple goals. Nothing trumps the quality and safety of patient care, and we believe that the investment we made in our information technology systems and processes is clearly helping us achieve that goal.”
