The Chicago-based Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center has been recognized by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) for reaching HIMSS Analytics Stage 7, the highest level on the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM), the model used to track EMR progress at hospitals and health systems.
The 408-bed hospital in Chicago has a Level I trauma center and a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the highest designations awarded by the state of Illinois. It offers comprehensive inpatient services, including medical, surgical, obstetrics and pediatric care, as well as a full breadth of outpatient services, according to HIMSS Analytics.
“Electronic medical records may just be a tool, but it’s the care that Illinois Masonic physicians and staff provide with that tool that sets us apart,” Susan Nordstrom Lopez, Advocate Illinois Masonic president, said in a statement. “We’re proud to be recognized with the HIMSS Stage 7 Award for EMR implementation and utilization, as we continually focus on initiatives aimed to improve the technology we use, the quality of our care and the safety of our patients.”
HIMSS Analytics developed the EMR Adoption Model in 2005 as a methodology for evaluating the progress and impact of electronic medical record systems for hospitals in the HIMSS Analytics Database. There are eight stages (0-7) that measure a hospital’s implementation and utilization of information technology applications. The final stage, Stage 7, represents an advanced patient record environment. The validation process to confirm a hospital has reached Stage 7 includes a site visit by an executive from HIMSS Analytics and former or current chief information officer and a current or former chief medical information officer to ensure an unbiased evaluation of the Stage 7 environments.
The hospital will be recognized at the 2014 Annual HIMSS Conference & Exhibition on Feb. 24-26, 2014, in Orlando, Fla.
