AHA designation honors nation’s hospitals for IT use and adoption
Munson Healthcare system hospitals have been named by the American Hospital Association’s journal Hospitals and Health Networks as Most Wired® hospitals for 2017.
Kalkaska Memorial Health Center, Munson Healthcare Cadillac Hospital, Munson Healthcare Grayling Hospital, Munson Medical Center, and Paul Oliver Memorial Hospital were recognized collectively with a Munson Healthcare System Most Wired award. Otsego Memorial Hospital in Gaylord also was recognized separately as Most Wired and the former West Shore Medical Center, now Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital, was recognized as Most Wired – Small and Rural.
Most Wired is an industry-standard benchmark survey conducted by the American Hospital Association’s Health Forum and the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). It is a leading industry barometer measuring information technology (IT) use and adoption among hospitals nationwide. The survey of 698 participants, representing 2,158 hospitals, examined how organizations are leveraging IT to improve performance for value-based health care in the areas of infrastructure, business and administrative management, clinical quality and safety, and clinical integration.
“Munson Healthcare is investing significantly in our IT system to ensure patients and providers have appropriate and secure real-time access to patient health information whether it is in the provider office, or at the hospital,” said Ed Ness, Munson Healthcare president and CEO. “This Most Wired recognition tells the residents of our northern Michigan communities that we are working to ensure clinical quality, patient safety, and greater efficiencies for the region.”
Results of the 2017 survey detail how many “Most Wired” hospitals are transforming care delivery with telehealth and remote monitoring to create more ways for patients to access services. Hospitals are investing in analytics to support effective decision making. To protect health information, hospitals are using sophisticated IT monitoring systems to detect patient privacy breaches, monitor for malicious activities or policy violations, and produce real-time analysis of security alerts.
“The Most Wired hospitals are using every available technology option to create more ways to reach their patients in order to provide access to care,” said Rick Pollack, AHA president and CEO. “They are transforming care delivery, investing in new delivery models in order to improve quality, provide access, and control costs.”
Detailed results of the survey and study can be found in the July issue of H&HN. For a full list of winners, visit www.hhnmag.com.