Network: May 2009
Members of the Team
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| (L-R) Theresa Paxton, RN, and Deborah Fields, RN, both from Neuro ICU at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital transfer patient data to the Sentara eCare® system. |
Another Successful Sentara eCare® Implementation
After months of preparation and training of 4,000 personnel and 450 physicians, the Sentara eCare Health Network® went "live" at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital at one minute past midnight on March 28. Teams of hospital staff, physicians and information technology experts worked diligently to bring the largest hospital in Sentara Healthcare up on the Sentara eCare Health Network® .
“We felt good about our level of preparation,” explains Jennifer Burrows, BSN, MBA, vice president of patient care services at the 550-bed Sentara Norfolk General Hospital. “This is was an enormous undertaking.”
Sentara Norfolk General Hospital was the fourth hospital in Sentara Healthcare to implement Sentara eCare®. Placing the largest hospital in the system fourth in the line up was a deliberate decision made to ensure there would be ample staff support from sister facilities.
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| John Parker, MD |
Already Seeing Positive Results
In its first year of full hospital implementation, Sentara eCare® has proved a significant benefit to patient care. All three hospitals to implement Sentara eCare® have physicians directly entering orders 85 percent of the time – a statistic almost unheard of nationally. In addition, the length of time from a medication being ordered to being administered has been reduced from a previous average of 132 minutes to an average of less than 40 minutes.
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| Minnie Mendoza, RN, Sentara Leigh Hospital |
Launches Continue at Sentara
Upcoming Sentara hospitals to go live include:
-- Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center – September 12, 2009
-- Sentara CarePlex Hospital/Sentara Port Warwick – November 7, 2009
-- Sentara Obici Hospital – 2010
The Sentara eCareHealth Network® is now in place at Sentara Bayside Hospital/Sentara Princess Anne Health Campus, Sentara Leigh Hospital, Sentara Norfolk General Hospital and Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital.
Sentara Medical Group continues to implement Sentara eCare® in its office practices and more than 1,100 patients are playing a more active role via the MyChart patient portal.