Conway Regional Medical Center has been selected as one of 25 hospitals nationwide to be honored as "Most Improved" for its use of information technology to enhance the quality of health care.
The award is given annually by Hospitals and Health Networks magazine based upon a Most Wired benchmarking study of hospitals and health systems to identify the best information technology (IT) practices in the industry. This year Conway Regional is the only hospital in Arkansas to receive a Most Wired award.
The results were released today in the July issue of the magazine, which is available at www.hhnmag.com.
"This is a significant honor for Conway Regional and our Information Systems Department," said Jim Lambert, President and CEO of Conway Regional Health System. "In addition to the significant improvements that have been made in the way we move information through the health system, I believe this award reflects the ongoing commitment of the Board of Directors to improving our information technology."
Rich Umbdenstock, president and CEO of the American Hospital Association said, "Health IT has shown incredible promise in helping us improve the quality and safety of the care hospitals deliver every day. The results of the Most Wired survey confirm that today's patient also understands the benefits of IT in improving care and improving the overall hospital experience."
Bob Hambuchen is the director of Information Systems at Conway Regional. He oversees a staff of 12 who maintain and update the health system's information technology. Some information technology improvements cited at Conway Regional are:
Establishing mobile computer carts for use in checking and updating patient charts through a new documentation program that is designed to enhance quality services.
Providing physicians with access, from home or office, to patient imaging and data through a secure data network;
Making patient information available to physicians and nurses through a new wireless network which extends throughout the hospital.
Offering the public access to health information, a physician directory, news, career opportunities, a web nursery and a variety of other services through the www.conwayregional.org Web site.
According to Hospitals and Health Networks magazine, the analysis shows that better outcomes occur among high tech hospitals, but it does not establish a direct causal relationship between technology and outcomes. The satisfaction analysis was conducted jointly with Press Ganey Associates and the quality analysis was conducted jointly with Thomson Healthcare.
The Most Wired survey measures how "wired" each health care facility is related to such factors as:
ordering of medical-surgical supplies
conducting business transactions
using IT for workforce management
providing accessible health care information online through the health system's website
providing accessible IT to health care personnel
using IT to preserve the security of health care information
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The Dow rose 49.91, or 0.44 percent, to 11,496.57, adding on to a 483-point gain Wednesday and Thursday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 0.36, or 0.03 percent, to 1,260.68, and the Nasdaq dropped 29.52, or 1.28 percent, to 2,282.78.
For the week, the Dow rose 3.57 percent, the Nasdaq increased 1.95 percent, and the S&P rose 1.71 percent.
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