One of only five ambulatory organizations in New York State to receive this honor
NEW YORK, NY (October 27, 2015) — AdvantageCare Physicians (ACP), the multispecialty physician practice group and partner of EmblemHealth, has been recognized by HIMSS Analytics for reaching Stage 6 on the HIMSS Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model℠ (EMRAM).
EMRAM is a methodology for evaluating the progress and impact of electronic medical record systems for ambulatory facilities in the HIMSS Analytics™ database. Ambulatory sites track their progress in completing eight stages (0-7), with Stage 7 – an advanced electronic patient record environment – being the highest. No medical facility in New York State has reached Stage 7, and only five – including AdvantageCare Physicians – have reached Stage 6.
“I am proud and delighted that HIMSS has honored ACP with Stage 6 recognition,” said Dr. Navarra Rodriguez, ACP’s Chief Medical Informatics Officer. “Achieving this recognition demonstrates to our patients and partners that ACP is using health information technology in a meaningful way to provide the highest levels of patient safety and coordinated, quality care.”
A Stage 6 designation by HIMSS Analytics indicates that an ambulatory facility has almost fully automated/paperless medical records that are available across most of the outpatient care settings. Among other qualifications, the facility must have achieved significant advancement in its IT capabilities, and is either starting to evaluate its data for care delivery process improvements or has already documented significant improvements in this area.
At ACP, the path to reaching Stage 6 began with its investment in and implementation of the Epic Systems electronic medical record (EMR). “ACP rolled out Epic with a big bang approach across our 36 medical offices in 2014,” said Benjamin Bordonaro, ACP’s Vice President, Clinical and Revenue Cycle. “The project included all specialties, lab, imaging and an interactive patient portal. Since the go-live we implemented our care collaboration and business intelligence platform including tools for population management, patient outreach and transitions of care.”
“A health care organization cannot reach Stage 6 without a complete team effort,” added Dr. Rodriguez. “From our IT team and partners at Epic who built the technology infrastructure and are continually improving our clinical information system, to our providers, care teams and support staff across ACP, our success is built on teamwork and dedication to providing the highest quality of care for our patients.”
“HIMSS Analytics congratulates AdvantageCare Physicians for leading the way toward health IT adoption,” said John Hoyt, FACHE, FHIMSS, Executive Vice President, HIMSS Analytics. “Stage 6 represents a level of sophistication that only 4,211 U.S. ambulatory sites have reached to date.”
About AdvantageCare Physicians
AdvantageCare Physicians, a partner of EmblemHealth, is the largest physician-led multi-specialty practice in the New York metropolitan area serving half a million patients at 36 locations throughout the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island, as well as Nassau and Suffolk counties. Our 450 primary care and specialist physicians and 165 Care Teams provide high-quality, team-based, coordinated care by focusing on the needs of our patients and partnering with them in their pursuit of better health. AdvantageCare Physicians’ focus is to improve the patient experience and satisfaction by offering New Yorkers convenient, connected, compassionate care. For more information, visit acpny.com.
About EmblemHealth
EmblemHealth, Inc. provides quality health care coverage and administrative services to approximately 3.1 million people. Groups and individuals can choose from a variety of PPO, EPO and HMO plans, as well as coverage for prescription drugs and dental and vision care. EmblemHealth offers a choice of networks, including quality doctors and other health care professionals throughout the region, leading acute care hospitals across the tristate area, and physicians and hospitals across all 50 states. For more information, visit www.emblemhealth.com.
About HIMSS Analytics
HIMSS Analytics is a wholly owned not-for-profit subsidiary of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS). The company collects, analyzes and distributes essential health IT data related to products, costs, metrics, trends and purchase decisions, and presents relevant maturity models to the healthcare industry to aid in strategic direction and value driven IT adoption and utilization. HIMSS Analytics delivers quality data, strategic direction and analytical expertise to healthcare delivery organizations, IT companies, governmental entities, financial, pharmaceutical and consulting companies. For more information, visit himssanalytics.org.