University Hospitals Completes Full Transition to Epic Electronic Health Record

CLEVELAND – University Hospitals (UH) completed the transition to the Epic electronic health record (EHR) over the weekend. More than 5.6 million patient records and scheduling systems were converted to one unified EHR across the health system.

UH Chief Executive Officer Cliff Megerian, MD, FACS, Jane and Henry Meyer Chief Executive Officer Distinguished Chair, called the implementation of Epic a transformational moment for the health system that will enable UH to improve an already extraordinary level of care, while giving patients greater access and connectivity to their care teams.

“This implementation showcases the heart of University Hospitals,” said Dr. Megerian. “At a time of continued adversity for many health systems, UH has chosen to invest in the latest and greatest of technologies, and essentially replace the ‘central nervous system’ of our hospitals. In doing so, we are confident that this will become a differentiator in the way we care for patients, and will allow us to continue to deliver service excellence.”

The transition to Epic will improve access to care by streamlining patient scheduling through the use of MyChart, which will make it easier to schedule a follow-up appointment or schedule a new appointment. MyChart integrates patients’ records at UH with their records at other healthcare organizations around Northeast Ohio and across the country, ensuring patients can easily connect with and access all their health data and records.

“Epic will allow us to enhance what makes us different,” said Dr. Megerian. “We provide kind, compassionate care. We are the leaders in value. We are the leaders in scientific discovery. We are the hometown team. Everything we do is for this community. Epic helps us to elevate those differentiators.”

Robert K. Eardley, MBA, Chief Information Officer of UH, said the technological advances offered by Epic will allow UH to streamline care through one unified patient record.

“For many years, our caregivers have had to coordinate the best care for our patients using the tools in nearly twenty different computer applications.  Moving all of that care to a single integrated record with Epic will allow our exceptional caregivers to more efficiently find the right information and more easily document the best next step of care for that individual.  This will enhance the personalized and compassionate approach to care for which we are known.”

“In implementing Epic, our guiding principle was to put the patient first in all of our decision making,” said Eardley. “Over the past several years, this process has touched nearly every single one of our caregivers, and each one of them has taken that principle to heart. Training and preparing nearly 30,000 caregivers has been a monumental effort, and when we went ‘live’ they were supported by over 6,000 personnel to ensure that our caregivers are equipped to deliver exceptional quality of care even during this transition. Our patients deserve it.”

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About University Hospitals / Cleveland, Ohio
Founded in 1866, University Hospitals serves the needs of patients through an integrated network of 21 hospitals (including five joint ventures), more than 50 health centers and outpatient facilities, and over 200 physician offices in 16 counties throughout northern Ohio. The system’s flagship quaternary care, academic medical center, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, is affiliated with Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, Northeast Ohio Medical University, Oxford University, the Technion Israel Institute of Technology and National Taiwan University College of Medicine. The main campus also includes the UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, ranked among the top children’s hospitals in the nation; UH MacDonald Women’s Hospital, Ohio’s only hospital for women; and UH Seidman Cancer Center, part of the NCI-designated Case Comprehensive Cancer Center. UH is home to some of the most prestigious clinical and research programs in the nation, with more than 3,000 active clinical trials and research studies underway. UH Cleveland Medical Center is perennially among the highest performers in national ranking surveys, including “America’s Best Hospitals” from U.S. News & World Report. UH is also home to 19 Clinical Care Delivery and Research Institutes. UH is one of the largest employers in Northeast Ohio with more than 30,000 employees. Follow UH on LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. For more information, visit UHhospitals.org.