Shared Resources Focus of Efforts to Enhance Electronic Medical Records

SARANAC LAKE - The federal government has set aside funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for hospitals who implement Electronic Medical Record systems; an effort Adirondack Medical Center began to pursue long before the economic downturn.

The ARRA contains $19 billion for hospitals who demonstrate "meaningful use," or meet 25 specific criteria through the establishment of an Electronic Medical Record system.  If AMC can demonstrate it has met the meaningful use regulations, it will be eligible for $3 million in additional Medicare reimbursement between 2012 and 2014.

"Hospitals everywhere are facing dire financial pressures," said Chandler Ralph, President and CEO of AMC.  "We have a responsibility to enhance efficiencies within our operations, but to also find creative ways to capture untapped revenue sources."

Hospitals that do not establish an electronic medical record or meet the 25 criteria for meaningful use by 2015 could face reductions in Medicare or Medicaid reimbursements.

Given the challenging nature of this endeavor, AMC took the lead to team up with other North Country hospitals for a conference on Friday, Feb. 12 to determine where there are opportunities to meet the meaningful use criteria through shared resources.

"This summit of North Country hospitals came from a realization that we are all in the same boat," said Mike Kelly, the Director of Information Systems at AMC.  "The intent is for all of us to identify the potential for shared resources or economies of scale, such as software purchases."

The hospitals attending the conference at AMC serve the North Country region from Watertown to Plattsburgh and from Malone to Elizabethtown.

The drive to demonstrate meaningful use is being accomplished in incremental steps.  For example, computerized entry of medication reconciliation must be achieved for 80 percent of patients by 2011.  Medication reconciliation is the process of ensuring the medications a patient takes in the hospital don't conflict with those which they take at home.

While there are still several steps to take before meeting the meaningful use criteria for electronic medical records, AMC is ahead of the curve by several years with the implementation of such programs for its inpatient, outpatient and ambulatory care populations.

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