Adventist GlenOaks Hospital (AGH) became the first hospital within Adventist Midwest Health (AMH) and the 23rd hospital in the Adventist Health System (AHS) to launch a new electronic medical record system.
The project, called iConnect, was launched in July after more than a year of preparations and training. By the end of 2007, all AMH hospitals will implement the new technology.
With iConnect, treatment plans continue without interruption for seamless patient care. Any tests, reports, or lab work are immediately updated in the patient's record, and caregivers can view the information simultaneously. Plus, it eliminates issues with illegibility.
When a patient arrives to register, all information is collected one time only, and the electronic medical record builds from there.
"We should embrace the changes the new system brings," said Todd Anderson, chief financial officer at AGH. "It is my hope that we look back two to three years from now and wonder how we ever functioned."
"This has been a monumental year for Adventist GlenOaks Hospital, with the opening of the new Emergency Department in June and now the launch of iConnect," said Brinsley Lewis, CEO of AGH. "Our army is a very small one, but we're very mighty," he said.
On Saturday evening, July 21, the night before the official go-live, AGH hosted a special dinner and campfire. Staff, super-users and trainers, plus the many Information Services members who contributed to the conversion were honored. A candle lighting ceremony and a prayer and special message were offered by Walter L. Wright, chairman, AHS Board of Directors.
Wright spoke of his favorite Bible verse, John 16:33, and applied it to iConnect, much to the enjoyment of his audience. He said, "These things I have spoken unto you, that you may have peace. In the world of IS, there has been tribulation: but be of good cheer, I have overcome the iConnect."
"Sometimes progress can be challenging," Wright continued. "When we stay in contact with a loving God, we have the assurance He will help us over the rough spots."
On go-live day, an overhead announcement was made, saying iConnect was now live. "Everyone logged on, and now we're really living this dream," said Mary Murphy, chief nursing officer at AGH. "I'm blessed to be a part of this project that will forever change the way we deliver care."
Julie L. Busch, public relations specialist, Adventist Midwest Hospital
