BRATTLEBORO — The Brattleboro Retreat has gone live with a new electronic health record system, a nearly $2 million investment it says will improve accountability and patient care and safety.
According to Robert E. Simpson Jr., Retreat president and CEO, the move is “a truly auspicious and critically important event for the Retreat.
“An electronic health record is a crucial component in modernizing patient care and ensuring patient safety; goals that match perfectly with the Retreat's philosophy of care and workplace culture,” he said in a press statement.
The Retreat selected Netsmart's myAvatar as its electronic health record (EHR) vendor in large part because it is a fully integrated system specifically designed for mental health and addiction care, and because of what Simpson said was the company's solid reputation and commitment to supporting mental health and addiction software in clinical settings.
Netsmart lists its primary U.S. offices in Kansas, New York, Ohio, and Illinois.
EHR eliminates paper documentation, duplication of documents, and problems associated with illegible handwriting. It also interfaces with current and anticipated computerized systems and allows multiple clinical disciplines to seek and access information at the same time.
Along with reducing clinical errors and supporting consistency of care across an organization, an EHR facilitates the exchange of medical information with providers both in-state and across the country, Simpson said.
Health care facilities across the nation are increasingly turning to electronic health records as a condition of participation in both private and public reimbursement programs. The federal EHR Incentive Program specifically asks providers to utilize the capabilities of EHRs to achieve benchmarks that can lead to improvements in patient care.
Simpson said that according to a national survey of providers published at www.healthit.gov, 79 percent report their practices run more efficiently with an EHR; 70 percent report enhanced data confidentiality with an EHR; and 82 percent report that prescribing medications electronically through an EHR saves time.
As part of its investment, the Retreat also has improved its internet bandwidth and added wireless capacity that can be expanded and utilized as the system is refined and adapted to meet demands, Simpson said.
The Brattleboro Retreat, at 75 Linden St., is a private, not-for-profit mental health and addictions hospital that provides comprehensive inpatient, outpatient, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient services for children, adolescents and adults.