Eclipsys Corporation® (NASDAQ:ECLP), The Outcomes Company®,
and Springhill Medical Center (Springhill, AL) today announced that the
outsourcing agreement between the two organizations has won a 2009
Outsourcing Excellence Award. The award, "Best Impact,” recognizes the
business and healthcare quality benefits the outsourcing relationship
has delivered to Springhill Medical Center and the patients it serves.
The 252-bed, privately owned acute care facility has successfully
engaged Eclipsys’ outsourcing services and technology to undergo a
complete technology transformation in its competitive market. Engaged to
provide IT operations support, strategic planning, budget management,
staffing and telecommunications support, Eclipsys’ IT staff has
successfully guided Springhill Medical Center through the installation
of new electronic medical record (EMR) and revenue cycle technology, as
well as instill a culture of ISO best practices, policies and procedures
that has led to a 44 percent increase in system availability. Patient
satisfaction in the hospital’s emergency department rose from 11 percent
to 92 percent and medication errors fell 80 percent while infection
rates fell by two-thirds.
Moreover,
the strategic relocation of a data center to higher
ground was another outcome of the relationship, enabling the hospital to
sustain 100 percent uptime during direct impact from Hurricanes Ivan and
Katrina. The IT system transformation also has helped the hospital
attract a leading cardiology practice and a number of orthopedic
surgeons.
"We went with Eclipsys as our IT outsource partner and system provider
because they have expertise in healthcare and the company’s products
offer the flexibility to accommodate the different practice requirements
of our clinical specialties,” said Jeffrey St. Clair, Springhill Medical
Center’s president and chief executive officer."Eclipsys’ team came in
and instilled best practices and a vision that improved our
profitability, control and internal and external costs and reestablished
our credibility with the clinical community. Perhaps most important, our
clinical patient outcomes, safety, quality of service and physician
adoption has turned us from a technology follower to a leader. Plus it
has placed us in a solid position to receive the benefits of the
forthcoming federal economic stimulus package related to the adoption of
EMR technology.”
According to John McAuley, Eclipsys’ senior vice president, Outsourcing
and Support, the expanded use of outsourcing in the health care industry
reflects the competitive and environmental pressures currently faced by
healthcare service providers. With budget tightening, staff shortages
and patients demanding better service than previously offered,
outsourcing of IT staff can be a critical response to address and
resolve financial and regulatory issues.
"The passage of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which
sets firm timelines to adopt EMR technology, comes at a time when
hospitals are facing great challenges to maintain and/or reduce the
total operating costs to the organization,” said McAuley. "Healthcare IT
staff outsourcing is an effective strategy to increase IT efficiency
while cutting costs and to help support a hospital’s ability to quickly
achieve the "meaningful use” requirements of ARRA. Given that the
healthcare industry is perhaps the most complex in data needs and
functionality, we are very pleased Eclipsys’ outsourcing group has been
recognized among its outsourcing peers across all industries for its
positive business and quality impact to one of our valued clients.”
About the Outsourcing Excellence Award
The Outsourcing Excellence Awards recognize the world’s best outsourcing
arrangements. An independent panel of expert judges evaluated and rated
numerous buyer and supplier IT relationships to select those that
demonstrate best practices, create and sustain a competitive advantage,
provide business transformation, achieve value, and mutually benefit
both buyer and supplier over time. The Outsourcing Center, an online
community specializing in thought leadership, beset practices and
innovation in outsourcing, conducts the annual awards program. It is
sponsored by the Everest Group, which helps companies create customized
business and sourcing strategies and outsourcing relationships that are
tailored to their specific situations, and Forbes Special Sections.
About Springhill Medical Center
Springhill Medical Center is a 252-bed, privately owned facility
offering a comprehensive medical-surgical hospital with all private
rooms. Springhill serves the residents of Mobile and the greater
Southwest Alabama region and offers a complete range of acute and
outpatient care, including open-heart, laser, laparoscopic and other
surgical services; laboratory, x-ray, electro- diagnostics, ultrasound,
CT, MRI, GI lab, heart catheterization and diagnostic services; a
comprehensive cancer program including mammography, outpatient
chemotherapy and radiation therapy; and comprehensive women's and
children's care, with full maternity suites, a nursery, special care
nursery and a pediatric special-care unit. Springhill's fully staffed
Emergency Department has board-certified emergency medicine physicians
on-site 24 hours a day.
Springhill Medical Center has been named as one of the nation’s "Most
Wired”, "Most Improved” hospitals, according to the results of the 2009
Most Wired Survey and Benchmarking Study released in the July issue of Hospitals
& Health Networks magazine, the journal of the American Hospital
Association (AHA).With an emphasis on providing high-quality clinical
care in a family- focused environment, Springhill Medical Center has
established a reputation for offering its patients the "best of both
worlds." Springhill is "small" enough to offer attentive, personalized
care, yet "large" enough to offer the comprehensive healthcare expected
from a regional leader. Celebrating 30 years of service to the
community, Springhill Medical Center looks to the future while remaining
committed to its mission: "To efficiently provide healthcare that is
unmatched in quality, convenience and benefit of use in a courteous and
family-oriented manner." For more information, see www.springhillmedicalcenter.com.
About Eclipsys
Eclipsys is a leading provider of advanced integrated clinical, revenue
cycle and performance management improvement software, clinical content
and professional services that help healthcare organizations improve
clinical, financial and operational outcomes. For more information, see www.eclipsys.com
or email info@eclipsys.com.
Statements in this news release concerning the timing of implementation
and features of and benefits provided by Eclipsys software,
evidence-based content and implementation and outsourcing services are
forward-looking statements and actual results may differ from those
projected due to a variety of risks and uncertainties. Implementation
and customization of Eclipsys software is complex and time-consuming.
Results depend upon a variety of factors and can vary by client. Each
client’s circumstances are unique and may include unforeseen issues that
make it more difficult than anticipated to implement or derive benefit
from Eclipsys software or services. The success and timeliness of the
company’s services will depend at least in part upon client involvement,
which can be difficult to control. Eclipsys is required to meet
specified performance standards, and the contract can be terminated or
its scope reduced under certain circumstances. More information about
company risks is available in recent Form 10-Q and 10-K filings made by
Eclipsys from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Special attention is directed to the portions of those documents
entitled "Risk Factors” and "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Eclipsys Corporation and
The Outcomes Company are registered trademarks of Eclipsys Corporation.
Other product and company names in this news release are trademarks
and/or registered trademarks of their respective companies.