Stony Brook University Medical Center Named Among “Most Wired” Hospitals In The Nation
Distinction conferred on medical center for third consecutive year
STONY BROOK, N.Y. – July 27, 2011 – For the third consecutive year, Stony Brook University Medical Center has been recognized as one of the nation’s “Most Wired” hospitals, according to the res
ults of the 2011 Most Wired Survey released in the July issue of Hospitals & Health Networks magazine.
The Most Wired survey is conducted annually by the magazine in cooperation with McKesson Corporation, HIT Exchange, the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME), and the American Hospital Association (AHA). The 2011 survey, which was conducted between Jan. 15 and March 15, asked hospitals and health systems nationwide to answer questions regarding their IT initiatives. A total of 530 surveys were completed, representing 1,388 hospitals, or roughly 24 percent of all U.S. hospitals.
We are very honored to receive this award for the third year,” said Linda Shanley, MBA, Chief Information Officer for Stony Brook University Medical Center. “This award represents a total team approach, with technical, clinical and support staff working together to foster better processes and eliminate steps to promote high quality patient care for our patients and their families through technology.”
The nation’s Most Wired hospitals are making progress towards greater health information technology (IT) adoption, according to Hospitals & Health Networks. As a field, hospitals are focused on expanding and adopting certain kinds of IT, such as computerized physician order entry (CPOE), to promote improved patient care and data collection.
Most Wired hospitals have made great strides forward in this area with the survey results revealing strong advances in CPOE. Among the key findings this year:
• Sixty-seven percent of Most Wired hos
pitals ordered medications electronically in comparison to 46 percent of the total responders.
• Fifty-eight percent of all organizations reported that they have implemented computerized standing orders based on treatment protocols that have been scientifically proven to be effective; in the Most Wired group, 86 percent have implemented such standing orders.
• A greater reliance on digital records puts pressure on Chief Information Officers (CIOs) to e
nsure that data can be restored quickly in the event that systems go down. Eighty-two percent of the Most Wired hospitals and 57 percent of all surveyed hospitals can restore clinical data within 24 hours after a power loss.
• Most Wired hospitals are leading in the use of encryption on movable devices to safeguard information. All Most Wired hospitals encrypt data for laptops and 76 percent encrypt smart phones in comparison to 85 percent of total responders that use encryption on laptops and 57 percent on smart phones.
“Greater adoption of IT can bring important new tools to our efforts to improve the safety and quality of care in hospitals, and better coordinate care across settings,” says Rich Umbdenstock, president and CEO of the AHA. “To promote further use of information technology, we are aggre
ssively working to remove regulatory barriers, and provide clarity in areas such as the meaningful use criteria.”
“Most hospitals look beyond short-term drivers of meaningful use and view technology as part of a powerful toolkit to support their long-term goals for clinical quality improvement and preparation for reform,” said Patrick Blake, executive vice president and group president, McKesson Technology Solutions, a sponsor of the survey. “Using all aspects of an electronic health record, including CPOE, is becoming the expected standard of care in many communities. As a result, we continue to see growth in those areas.”
Strides are also being made in the integration of the electronic health records with digital clinical imaging, according to survey results. Progress in the areas of digital dictation, structured reporting, and voice recognition with picture archiving and communication systems is also being made. Under these systems, clinicians receive faster diagnostic results that can improve aspects of patient care.
The July H&HN cover story detailing the 2011 survey results is available at www.hhnmag.com.
About Stony Brook University Medical Center:
Stony Brook University Medical Center is Long Island’s only university-based academic medical center. It serves as the region’s only tertiary care center and Level 1 Trauma Center, and is home to the Stony Brook University Heart Center, Cancer Center, the Stony Brook Long Island Children’s Hospital, the Institute for Advanced Neurosciences, and the Gastroenterology Program. Stony Brook provides Suffolk County’s only Level 4 Regional Perinatal Center, state-designated AIDS Center, state-designated Comprehensive Psychiatric Emergency Program, state-designated Burn Center, the Christopher Pendergast ALS Center of Excellence, and Kidney Transplant Center. It is home of the nation’s first Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center. To learn more, visit www.stonybrookmedicalcenter.org.
