Page 24 - SFHN SEPTEMBER 2021

What’s New... What’s New... What’s New...

Health Care District of Palm Beach County Holy Cross Health Announces
Launches “Connect PBC” and Integrates Epic OB/GYN Hospitalist Program

Electronic Health Record System for Patients To continue bringing consistent care to patients in the hospital, Holy Cross Health
in Fort Lauderdale has introduced an OB/GYN hospitalist program, the only hospital
The Health Care District in Broward County to have a certified Ob Hospitalist team, partnering with Ob
of Palm Beach County has Hospitalist Group, the industry’s largest dedicated OB/GYN hospitalist provider.
launched a premier Epic As part of the program, board certified OB/GYN physicians are immediately avail-
electronic health record able on-site 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to focus on providing consistent care, as
(EHR) system that now well as emergent care to those arriving in labor and delivery. The mission is to elevate
links thousands of primary the standard of care by ensuring expectant mothers are evaluated and treated by a
care clinic and rural hospi- physician regardless of time of day, complication or circumstance.
tal patients to a single, The OB-GYN hospitalist program is staffed with an experienced team of board-cer-
shared platform for quality, tified obstetricians and gynecologists on-site at Holy Cross Health 24 hours a day, 7-
integrated care. The new days a week. The patient’s physician will make sure that the OB/GYN hospitalist on-
“Connect PBC” patient site has all patient medical records.
portal ensures patients In the event the patient’s physician is unavailable, an OB/GYN hospitalist has access
within the Health Care to the patient’s medical records and will be there to care for her, address any evolving
District’s safety net system, issues and provide the mother and baby with a safe delivery. The hospitalist team at
many who are under- Holy Cross is highly skilled in a variety of different delivery techniques and are
served, have convenient required to maintain high levels of clinical performance and professional standards.
and secure digital access to They have additional training in neonatal resuscitation, advanced cardiac life support
their health information. and OB emergency care and are also available for consultations in the hospital and for
“Our new Epic-based emergency care in the Emergency Department.
integrated platform pro-
vides best-in-class technol-
ogy to meet the needs of
our patients, many of Broward Health First U.S. Hospital System Using
whom have complex con-
ditions and find it chal- Janet D. Moreland, ARNP , MSN, LHRM, Assoc. VP , Innovative VirtaMed Laparoscopic Simulator
lenging to navigate the Administrator of Lakeside Medical Center and Jade
healthcare delivery sys- DeDios, RN, on July 1, 2021, the day the Epic Electronic Broward Health Medical
tem,” said Belma Andri , Health Record System ‘Connect PBC’ went live. Center, home to the Broward
M.D., MPH, the Health Health Graduate Medical
Care District’s Chief Medical Officer. “With Epic, our providers now have a more Education Simulation Lab in
complete picture of their patients’ health across the continuum of care right at their Fort. Lauderdale, FL, has
fingertips.” become the first United
After going live on July 1st, 2021, the new software now serves the more than States medical institution to
50,000 unique C. L. Brumback Primary Care Clinics’ patients at nine locations in receive the VirtaMed
communities of need, as well as over 27,000 patients a year at Lakeside Medical LaparoS™ surgical training
Center, the Health Care District’s rural, acute-care teaching hospital in Belle Glade. simulator. This mixed reality
The Epic system provides medical staff with immediate access to test results, the abil- laparoscopic simulator pro-
ity to place orders remotely and seamlessly communicate with other providers and vides resident doctors with a
Health Care District departments. The EHR system also helps to promote population simulated environment to
health by identifying health trends, which can lead to initiatives that improve the prepare for clinical practice
overall health of the community. safely and efficiently.
“A consolidated patient medical record across clinical areas allows informed deci- Broward Health will use
sions to be made more quickly and efficiently,” said Karen A. Harris, the Health Care the LaparoS for general sur-
District’s VP of Field Operations. “Epic is a scalable system that allows us to effective- gery training with an emphasis on patient safety.
ly manage our volume of patient care across our programs, provide continuity of care, First installed in June 2021, the LaparoS has left an impression on residents and
reduce duplication, and improve patient outcomes for years to come.” professors alike.
Hollywood-based Memorial Healthcare System extended its clinical, professional “We chose the LaparoS because if offers our residents a more realistic simulation of
and technical integration to the Health Care District through its strategic Epic what they will encounter in the operating room,” said Dr. Ivan Puente, General
Connect program, which extends Epic EHR software with community physicians and Surgery Program Director at Broward Health Medical Center.“We feel very strongly
other hospitals. The year-long implementation process in the midst of the global that this will not only enhance their skill development and also contribute to patient
COVID-19 pandemic was a monumental achievement. The Epic Community safety”
Connect project team worked virtually to design and build applications, conduct test- The LaparoS training simulator is from VirtaMed, the world leader in medical sim-
ing and training, and roll out the technology on schedule. ulation training. In contrast to other forms of medical training with simulators,
“Memorial Healthcare System and the Health Care District of Palm Beach County LaparoS training modules capture the whole procedural preparation, including posi-
are committed to maintaining the health and well-being of our communities by tioning of the patient and placement of tools. The simulator offers real-time learning
empowering physicians and patients with all the resources required to proactively in the form of haptic feedback, complication training and guided procedures.
address medical issues in the context of population health through an optimal infra- “Simulation is a great way to enhance medical skills,” says Kimberly Mazili,
structure that helps elevate the delivery of care,” said Jeff Sturman, Senior Vice Business Development Manager for VirtaMed. “After years of with success with our
President and Chief Digital Officer, Memorial Healthcare System. “A partnership orthopaedics simulator the next logical step was for Broward to be the first to get our
through Epic Connect, which Memorial offers, brings all healthcare providers – hos- new LaparoS so they could exetend the capacity of their simulation center and their
pitals, community physicians and other points of care – into a single, comprehensive residency programs.”
longitudinal patient record that stimulates joint collaboration, significantly benefit- Broward Health has a long history of using simulation to train its next generation
ing the hosting organization, community physicians who are part of the extended of surgeons. Medical students at Broward Health Medical Center have access to a
network, and especially the patients they serve.” medical skills simulation lab with a variety of simulators, including the VirtaMed
ArthroS™ simulator for arthroscopic skills training. The addition of the LaparoS
expands the resources available for skills development in a risk-free training environ-
ment.

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24 September 2021 southfloridahospitalnews.com South Florida Hospital News