Making the Rounds with Founding Dean Dr. Barbara Atkinson
Friends and Colleagues,
Brian Rosenberg, EHR Program Director at UMC
Over the past few months, we have been building the medical school's clinical practice. Within the practice, we will teach third and fourth-year students and residents about patient care. A critical component of UNLV Medicine's clinical practice is its electronic health records (EHR) system. It has become essential for physicians to keep a permanent patient record that can be shared easily with patients and their health care providers. Medical students must know how to use EHRs today so they can help to improve the continuity of care for patients as they seek care from one provider to the next and in different settings.
UMC and UNLV Medicine Partnership
We are partnering with University Medical Center (UMC) to implement our EHR. UMC just finished a thorough review of available EHR systems and chose EPIC. It's one of the best EHR systems available and is the product of choice for many academic health centers. UMC purchased all of the possible modules so this will be an outstanding product when it is fully built out. Leading the project for UNLV Medicine is Wonda Riner, Director of Academic and Learning Technologies. She is working closely with Brian Rosenberg, EHR Program Director for UMC, and his team. The EPIC system will function in UNLV Medicine's clinical practices and at UMC's hospital, clinics and quick care facilities.
Implementing an EHR system requires a lot of planning, learning and testing to ensure it works seamlessly. We're working hard to understand the intricacies of the system, which will ultimately require approval from the Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents at an upcoming meeting.
EPIC EHR implementation steps
Assemble a team for project oversight and implementation. The UMC EHR team consists of nearly 100 people who are dedicated to learning the EPIC system. They have completed the research, project planning and groundwork analysis.
Complete specific, specialized certification training in Wisconsin at EPIC's home office.
Make key decisions to ensure the EHR works according to UMC's and UNLV Medicine's workflow. EPIC is a complex system that has many standard applications. Hospitals can choose to set up some pieces specifically tailored to their own workflow.
Build a demonstration system to test and ensure the design is appropriate for UMC and UNLV Medicine.
Interface testing of the EHR system.
Integrated testing of the EHR system.
End-user training for UMC and UNLV Medicine.
"Go Live" readiness and assessment.
"Go Live"
Post-live support, on-going training and additional rollouts as needed
This partnership is truly exciting and will improve the patient experience for local residents affiliated with UMC and UNLV Medicine. The best part for the patient is a portal called MyChart that allows a patient to review his/her own medical records and pass them easily to another provider if they need a referral or if they are traveling and need care. It's also a great way to review your own laboratory results and keep track of vaccinations and medications.
Best wishes,
Barbara
L to R: Clara Thomas, Sharon Kisling, Victoria Harding, Dr. Atkinson, Keishe Caruthers, Regena Ellis, Cherie Mancini, and Lorraine Oliver
AFL-CIO Conference Presentation
Last week I was invited to speak at the state AFL-CIO meeting in Reno.
The national AFL-CIO president, Richard Trumka, and the U.S. Secretary of Labor, the Honorable Thomas Perez, spoke to begin the meeting.
My presentation was later in the day and highlighted the economic impact the medical school would have in Southern Nevada. By 2030, its estimated the Las Vegas Medical District and the school together will generate $3.4 billion annually and produce more than 22,000 new jobs. The news was greeted with
enthusiasm.
I also had the pleasure to sit with member leaders of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) who represent public employees and health care workers in Las Vegas (see photo). I truly enjoyed meeting everyone.
