TORONTO, Nov. 28, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OntarioMD’s Health Report Manager (HRM) has reached another major milestone in sharing patient information to ensure faster follow-up with patients after hospital and specialty clinic visits. The addition of St. Joseph’s Health Centre Guelph and several specialty clinics means that patient reports from these sites are now digitally delivered directly to physicians’ electronic medical records (EMRs) to support timely and accessible care to patients. OntarioMD is now one step closer to our objective to connect all hospitals in the province to HRM.
With the addition of these new HRM sites, Ontario patients are now served by over 160 hospital sites and more than 200 specialty clinic locations that can send their reports to almost 10,000 physicians. Receiving the reports electronically, in almost real time, means that clinically relevant information is in the hands of care providers before the patient arrives, supporting informed care and care planning.
“Patients expect health care providers in their circle of care to be able to share their information digitally so they can get any follow-up care they need in a timely and informed way,” said Sarah Hutchison, CEO of OntarioMD. “HRM has become an indispensable digital health service because it supports the necessary exchange and integration of patient information to support responsive care, enabling providers to use their time most effectively.”
St. Joseph’s Health Centre Guelph is the latest hospital to be added to HRM. With this addition, the south west Ontario region, with 3.6 million residents, now has 100% of its hospitals sending patient reports through HRM directly to physicians’ EMRs.
“Our mission focuses on people-centred care through discovery, innovation, and partnerships,” said David Wormald, President of St. Joseph’s Health Centre Guelph. “The HRM system aligns perfectly and takes us one step closer to our goal of becoming a fully digital facility. We are pleased to have implemented this resource that will mean faster, more secure access to patient information for our physicians and health care professionals, and improved quality and patient-centred care for those we serve.”
A growing number of specialty clinics across Ontario are sending reports through HRM to improve care transitions for patients. MyHealth Centre, (22 clinics), Canadian Medical Alliance (18 clinics), Canadian Medical Radiology Healthcare (13 clinics), Greater Niagara Medical Imaging (6 clinics), Guelph Medical Imaging (3 clinics) and Cambridge Medical Imaging are also sending medical record and diagnostic imaging reports so physicians are well-informed and up-to-date on their patients’ health.
OntarioMD will continue to expand its offering by extending HRM to more points of care and add new features to the service to make it an even more valuable tool to the health care system. HRM has been a very cost-effective digital health investment for Ontario. Not only does it save physician practice staff time by not having to handle paper anymore, it is avoiding costs for hospitals, specialty clinics and physician practices. An independent review by Deloitte completed in 2017 found that HRM enables cost avoidance to the health care system of an average of $15 million every year and that number continues to grow.
Visit OntarioMD.ca for a complete list of hospitals and specialty clinics that send their reports through HRM. Physicians interested in connecting to HRM through their certified EMRs can contact support@ontariomd.com to get started.
About OntarioMD
OntarioMD is the leader in primary care digital health in Ontario and is a valuable system partner for other organizations who wish to implement their solutions to the primary care sector. It manages programs and services that connect physician practices that use certified EMRs to more patient data collected outside primary care settings. OntarioMD also supports Ontario's physicians with practical advice from Peer Leaders and experienced Practice Advisors who help them optimize their EMR use to enhance patient care and achieve greater practice efficiency. The organization offers valuable, fully-accredited educational opportunities for physicians annually at its conferences and seminars.
Over 16,000 clinicians are participating in OntarioMD services: Health Report Manager (HRM), eNotifications, eConsult-EMR Integration, OLIS Deployment, EMR Quality Dashboard, Peer Leader Program, EMR Practice Enhancement Program. For more information about these services, please visit OntarioMD.ca.
OntarioMD is funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care.
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