TOMAHAWK -- Ministry Health Care said its first site in the northern region, Ministry Medical Group located on the Sacred Heart Hospital Campus in Tomahawk, went live with an Electronic Health Record (EHR) on Nov 18.
The Sacred Heart Hospital campus in Tomahawk was selected as the northern region pilot site because of its size and the fact that clinic and hospital operations have worked closely together for years, officials said at a news conference.
They said there are many electronic health record systems in the marketplace, and the decision to choose CattailsMD™ was made because Ministry Health Care felt it was in the best interest of its patients throughout north central Wisconsin. CattailsMD™ will allow Ministry Medical Group, Ministry hospitals, and Marshfield Clinic to be fully integrated with a common electronic health record.
Collectively, the two organizations provide patient care to many of the same patients and provide service to much of the same geographical area. The combination of Ministry and Marshfield records will create the largest patient database in Wisconsin with 2.5 million patients and more than 1,000 clinicians sharing access to those records.
Officials called implementation of the Electronic Health Record a monumental accomplishment, not only because of the countless hours and numbers of people it took to achieve, but because it represents the strategic direction of how Ministry Health Care will provide health services in the future. The Electronic Health Record is one of Ministry Health Care’s biggest and single most important patient safety initiatives.
Ministry Health Care has used the CattailsMD™ EHR in central Wisconsin at Saint Clare’s Hospital and at several Ministry Medical Group offices, as well as Saint Joseph’s Hospital in Marshfield for many years. All Ministry Medical Group providers and all Ministry Health Care hospitals in north central Wisconsin will be added to the CattailsMD™ EHR system within the next few years.