It was an EPIC Go-Live!
In October 2014, we began a journey together and our destination was our vision: to be nationally respected for excellence in patient care and most trusted for personalized coordinated care.
On Saturday, April 30, at 8:13 a.m., a part of that vision was achieved with a momentous milestone — MidState, along with Windham Hospital, became the first hospitals in our system to go-live with Epic.
While there are bumps in any transition of this magnitude, it was overall a positive experience. Providers and staff were well prepared and supported. Issues were identified, and solutions were implemented when problems arose.
“The Epic transition presented a steep learning curve, but all of our staff was confident and committed. The Epic implementation services team commented that we are ahead of where they would expect us to be at this point,” said Cathy Stevens, Central Region vice president for patient care services.
Stevens says there are many to thank for the successful go-live — from all our staff and trainers to our information technology and clinical informatics team. They played a vital role in making this transition a reality.
In their own words, here’s what some MidState users and trainers had to say:
“As a super user and nurse, the transition to a new system was exciting and challenging. As a team, we overcame the barriers to change, which will improve the quality of care we provide.” —Michele Wasef, BSN, RN, Pavilion B, MidState
“Going live with Epic was the culmination of an arduous task. I was excited and at the same time nervous — just like becoming a dad again.” —Rene Ambos, MSN, RN, Epic Ambulatory & Oncology Credentialed Trainer, MidState
“As a credentialed trainer for clinical documentation and Stork, it was exciting to see the content I have taught over the past three months incorporated into the nursing staff workflows. This experience has been very rewarding, and the staff has been extremely positive and willing to learn.” —Dorothy Dauphinais, MSN, RN-BC, Clinical Educator, Education & Development, HOCC
“The go-live was not about managing a new information system, but about managing change and the stress that goes along with it. The enormous training that prepared us was invaluable. The kind words of encouragement and understanding I heard that day made me proud to be part of the MidState team.” —Dr. Alan Weiner, Medical Director, Emergency Services, MidState
With all that we have achieved to date, the journey continues. More of our HHC acute-care hospitals will deploy Epic later this year, with The Hospital of Central Connecticut expected to go-live in January 2017.