Ochsner Introduces Epic EMR for Increased Quality, Efficiency, Access

New Orleans, March 31, 2011—Ochsner Health System today announced it is deploying Epic’s industry-leading electronic medical record (EMR) software, EpicCare, across its eight hospitals and 38 health centers. Epic will take Ochsner’s 15 years of experience with EMRs to the next level and integrate more than 38 clinical, scheduling and billing systems across the organization. Epic will allow Ochsner to streamline patient care, improve patient outcomes and empower patients to be more involved in their healthcare.

“With the implementation of Epic, Ochsner continues to be at the forefront of healthcare technology regionally and nationally,” said Chris Belmont, Ochsner Health System Vice President and Chief Information Officer. “The most important result of this technology is that our patients will receive the finest possible care and enhance the coordination of care throughout the region.”

Epic will also make it easier for Ochsner patients, nurses and physicians to interact and communicate with healthcare providers both inside and outside Ochsner Health System. Physicians and clinical staff will be able to access complete patient records and easily order treatments based on best practices. Patients will even be able to manage their own and their family’s appointments, test results, healthcare bills and patient education from their smart phones.

By simplifying methods for accessing and sharing medical records among hospitals, physicians and caregivers, Epic will provide an easier, more efficient way to do business for Ochsner’s affiliated physicians. Currently, about one of four doctors in the U.S. use EpicCare, and any of those physicians on Epic’s nationwide Care Everywhere network can exchange records across organizational lines.

Ochsner plans to offer the EpicCare Ambulatory EMR to local physicians for use in their care setting to enable them to meet Meaningful Use requirements. Meaningful Use is a set of requirements from the federal government that describe how EMRs should be used by healthcare providers. The Epic software will allow Ochsner and participating providers to adapt quickly to the constantly changing healthcare regulatory environment.

“Implementing a system of this scale is a major undertaking,” said Chad Jones, Ochsner Health System’s Epic Project Executive and Assistant Vice President of Corporate Systems. “Ochsner has hired 60 new full-time employees to implement the Epic system and bring this technology to our community.”

About Ochsner Health System
Ochsner Health System is southeast Louisiana’s largest non-profit, academic, multi-specialty, healthcare delivery system with eight hospitals and over 38 health centers in Louisiana. Ochsner has been named the Consumer Choice for Healthcare in New Orleans for 15 consecutive years and is the only Louisiana hospital recognized by U.S. News and World Report as a “Best Hospital” across seven specialty categories. Ochsner employs more than 12,500 employees, over 850 physicians in over 90 medical specialties and subspecialties and conducts over 300 clinical research trials annually. For more information, visit ochsner.org and follow us on Twitter and Facebook.