In this podcast, managing editor John DeGaspari speaks with Dr. Michael Rakotz, leader of the NorthShore Medical Group Primary Care Office in Highland Park, Ill.
NorthShore won first place in HCI’s recent IT Innovator Award program, which recognizes healthcare IT leadership teams that have effectively employed information technology to make a difference in their organizations and in the healthcare industry. The NorthShore team was formally recognized at HCI's Innovator Award event during the HIMSS conference in New Orleans this week.
At NorthShore, an interdisciplinary team of clinicians, informaticists and quality experts have taken a major step in controlling undiagnosed hypertension in its outpatient population, by harnessing its electronic health record system to screen for and evaluate individuals with previously undetected hypertension in its multi-specialty medical group.
The system, which went live in January 2011, has helped the integrated health system make significant progress in eliminating undiagnosed hypertension among its patients receiving care within its primary care network. Since going live, the system has identified more than 500 patients with undiagnosed hypertension; it has allowed NorthShore to identify hypertensive patients as soon as they meet the criteria, essentially shutting off the flow of new undiagnosed hypertensive patients entering the system.
To download this or other HCI Podcasts from iTunes, click here.
