Barcoded Electronic Forms Help Cherry County Hospital Prepare for Implementing Meditech 6.0 SCA

Sept. 12, 2012 - PRLog -- Cherry County Hospital, a Critical Access Hospital in Valentine, NE, had an e-forms management system, but it didn’t offer the broad range of documents required in patient registration and clinical areas. The hospital's executive team also identified the need for barcoding forms to enable automatic indexing as the hospital transitioned from an HMS system to Meditech 6.0. They chose Access Intelligent Forms Suite to speed the transition to electronic medical records (EMRs).

“Access understood our electronic forms management needs and figured out how to meet them cost-effectively,” said Peggy Snell, Chief Financial Officer at Cherry County Hospital. “We recognized that the Access Intelligent Forms Suite would pave the way for the move to Meditech 6.0.”

Deploying any new software in multiple departments is a big step, and introducing a new, hospital-wide health information system and e-forms management suite simultaneously is an even greater challenge. To contribute to a smooth transition, Access and Cherry County created a comprehensive project plan, which Snell believes was followed effectively.

“Our Access implementation consultant stayed with us through our Meditech 6.0 conversion and made sure all our e-forms were working with the new system,” she said. “We had a deadline for the switch, and Access helped us meet it.”

When a registrar sets up a new patient account in Meditech 6.0 or registers a returning patient, they simply click a button to generate a barcoded armband and forms packet. Each form has a barcode and patient demographics pre-filled on each form, speeding completion time and reducing work for staff. When the HIM department scans the forms, Meditech SCA uses the barcodes to send the forms into the correct patient’s EMR.

Cherry County plans to extend the use of its Access solution to other departments in the near future.

About Cherry County Hospital
Cherry County Hospital is a very progressive Critical Access Hospital in Valentine, NE, with 25 beds.  The hospital has an attached Rural Health Clinic, over 20 Specialty clinics, a dialysis unit, Home Health, and Ground and air ambulance services. Progressing to the EMR will only enhance the quality of care with always having the best interest of our patients in mind.

About Access
Access is the world’s leading electronic forms (e-forms) management, automation and workflow software provider. Our solutions transform any paper-intensive forms process into a paperless, collaborative one. Hundreds of hospitals worldwide are using Access solutions to improve patient care and safety, cut costs, and enhance electronic health records (EHR), patient safety, and downtime planning initiatives. Learn more at http://www.accessefm.com.