East Alabama Medical Center Completes Successful Electronic Physician Documentation Go-Live with Crossings Healthcare Solutions
OPELIKA, Ala., September 8, 2020 — East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC), a leading provider of healthcare services in Lee and surrounding counties, partnered with Crossings Healthcare Solutions to enhance its Cerner EHR platform even as the COVID-19 pandemic raged on. EAMC and Crossings remained determined to bring Crossings’ Enhanced Physician Documentation System live on the planned timeline, even in the face of an unprecedented global pandemic.
Crossings quickly activated a plan for virtual operations to support EAMC’s go-live of the Crossings’ Enhanced Dynamic Documentation package. The virtual go-live, Crossings’ first, utilized videoconferencing technology to enable all parties to communicate, share information, and be prepared to respond quickly.
The project resulted in a successful and on-time implementation of the Enhanced Dynamic Documentation package. EAMC was able to improve the accuracy of medical records and make information more readily available to clinicians, while decreasing their transcription expense by nearly 95 percent, an annualized savings of $800,000. The shift to virtual training and conversion support also resulted in a significant travel expense savings of approximately $35,000.
Through the virtual implementation, the Crossings command center team was able to seamlessly collaborate and share resources with the team at EAMC. This remote strategy enabled the team to offer virtual training and support services to the clinicians at the hospital with 100 percent of providers trained, on schedule. Because the process was virtual, the Crossings team was able to have more flexibility to be available after-hours and at times convenient to EAMC.
“I was very pleased with the whole experience,” says nephrologist Tom Stokes, MD. “The Crossings virtual command center had plenty of support people available remotely. We had access to everyone we needed, in a timely fashion.”
Despite the COVID-19 crisis, Crossings Healthcare Solutions was able to meet the needs of EAMC — safely and securely. The experience gained in the virtual support model paved the way for similar virtual training and go-live activities at EAMC moving forward.
About Crossings Healthcare Solutions
Crossings Healthcare Solutions was established in 2014 to provide custom clinical decision support software that enhances the Cerner Millennium System. Our award-winning MPages and Advisors solutions have been installed at more than 76 hospitals across the U.S., including California, Nevada, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Montana and Missouri, as well as Washington D.C. These solutions are seamlessly integrated into clinical workflow to enhance usability, efficiency and communication.
About East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC)
East Alabama Medical Center is a 340-bed regional referral hospital located in Opelika that serves a nine-county area. The EAMC organization includes EAMC-Lanier hospital in Valley; between the two hospitals and their collective service lines, there are about 3,500 employees in the organization. EAMC is the second largest employer in the region, trailing only Auburn University. Among the services that EAMC provides are open-heart surgery and cancer treatment, both of which are highly acclaimed specialties at EAMC. The hospital also operates multiple physician practices and the Auburn University Medical Clinic. EAMC is in the process of building a Freestanding Emergency Department and Ambulatory Surgery Center in neighboring Auburn. EAMC-Lanier has a nursing home, acute rehab unit, and offers occupational medicine.