Wake Forest Baptist Makes U.S. News’ ‘Most Connected Hospitals’ List
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – July 21, 2011 – Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center has been recognized as one of the 118 “Most Connected Hospitals” in the country by U.S. News & World Report.
Wake Forest Baptist is the only hospital in North Carolina on the list for advancing and implementing digital medical records by a nonprofit industry association.
On its Web site, U.S. News said it developed the “Most Connected” list this year in conjunction with HIMSS Analytics, a division of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, to highlight hospitals that “are both digitally forward and clinically excellent.”
“It is an honor to be recognized as a leader in the use of electronic medical records,” said Shelia Sanders, vice president and chief information officer of Wake Forest Baptist. “We were an early adopter and benefactor of this technology in providing great patient care.”
HIMSS Analytics evaluates the degree that hospitals have incorporated electronic medical records (EMR) technology into patient care and assigns institutions to one of eight stages, from Stage 7 (full use) to Stage 0 (no use).
Wake Forest Baptist is rated at Stage 6, which includes hospitals where doctors, nurses, pharmacy, laboratory and radiology services use EMR technology extensively, but not exclusively.
About 1 percent of U.S. hospitals are at Stage 7 and about 3.5 percent are at Stage 6, according to HIMSS Analytics. Only hospitals at Stages 6 and 7 were eligible for the “Most Connected” list.
A searchable version of the complete U.S. News “Most Connected” list is available online.
Read more about Wake Forest Baptist’s quality and awards recognition.
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