On May 22, BWHC staff had the opportunity to hear first-hand from colleagues about their experiences using the Epic Electronic Health Records system at a panel discussion, Life with Partners eCare: A Clinician Perspective. Moderated by Amy Miller, MD, PhD, at BWHC, the panel included Dr. Luis Lobón, MD, MS, chief of Emergency Medicine at BWFH and vice chair of Community Emergency Medicine, BWH Department of Emergency Medicine;  Alice King, RN, MS, Partners eCare application manager, Emergency, Epic ASAP; and Amy Silver, RN, case review coordinator, BWFH and Newton Wellesley Hospital. The event was held as part of BWHC’s organizational readiness planning for the Partners eCare, scheduled to Go-Live at BWHC on May 30, 2015.

Lobón, who used Epic at Cambridge Alliance, shared that while he was skeptical when he was first introduced to the Epic product in 2007, he embraced it and now feels it positively changed the way he practiced emergency medicine while there.

“One of the best assets an emergency room physician can have when dealing with an acute or critical situation is immediate access to a continuum of care in record-keeping for any patient,” said Lobón.

Lobón went on to state that he has experienced many times that having access to this information has “expedited, simplified and optimized care for patients” he has seen.

While working as a nurse in neurology at the University of Virginia, Amy Silver used Epic and found the smart text and phrase feature to be very helpful.

“They help to populate your notes with the information you typically use and need to document, and make note-writing much faster,” said Silver.

Silver also shared that for nurses, Epic’s best-practice advisories provide embedded clinical support that tell you what guidelines recommend you do.

As the application manager for ASAP, Epic’s emergency department application, Alice King is part of the collaborative team responsible for incorporating content decisions into the Partners eCare build. Previously a member of the BWH Emergency Department leadership team, she was able to provide insight into how the Epic system is being customized and optimized for Partners eCare.

“We are now exactly one year to Go-Live and I think it’s safe to say that our implementation is beginning to feel very real for all of us,” said Dot Goulart, MS, RN, BWH Organizational Readiness director. “So many of us have committed countless hours to building the system and reviewing  workflows, and soon will be participating in integrated testing and then training. To hear colleagues who have been through these experiences and used the system at other locations talk about their experiences was very reassuring and helpful in setting expectations. We are looking forward to offering more events like this in the coming months.”

A recording of the panel discussion can be viewed here. For more information and a calendar of upcoming events, subscribe to the PeC@BWHC Epic Matters monthly update by submitting this form.

Article courtesy of Partners eCare @ BWHC.