SIU Med School to Begin Conversion to Electronic Medical Records

After an 18-month review process, Southern Illinois University School of Medicine and its physician practice have awarded a seven-year contract to GE Healthcare for an electronic medical records (EMR) program. The contract is for the purchase of software and maintenance. The system will allow for the recording and capture of all medical record information for all patients treated in Springfield.

"We need to move to an electronic medical records system for our patients, our physicians and staff, and the medical students and residents that we train at SIU," said Dr. Richard Embrey, medical director for SIU Physicians & Surgeons (P&S) and associate professor of surgery. "We’re concerned about the quality of health care, which includes a commitment to patient safety and confidentiality.  Because EMRs are going to become the standard of care, this conversion will help us develop the kind of 'best practices' for our growing academic medical practice here at SIU."

The conversion will begin in July 2006 when all dictation, lab results and radiology reports will automatically interface into the electronic record. The total conversion is expected to take two years. The initial purchase cost with GE Healthcare is $1,184,000. New hardware, including computers for exam areas, also will be purchased.

"With links between patient appointment scheduling, billing systems, dictation systems, laboratories, radiology reports and demographic information, the EMR program will allow us to optimize many administrative functions and reduce redundancy in the many things we do," said David Tkach, CEO for SIU P&S, who led the 20-person team that selected the GE Centricity product after evaluating other EMR programs and bids.

The new SIU EMR system will be designed to interface with EMR systems at its two affiliated hospitals, Memorial Medical Center and St. John's Hospital.

SIU clinics had more than 322,000 patient visits in the last fiscal year (FY04) with nearly 104,000 unduplicated patients served at its primary clinical sites in Springfield, Carbondale, Decatur and Quincy. SIU P&S has 178 physician members.

- 30 -