ATLANTA, Nov. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Surgical Information Systems ("SIS"), a leader in perioperative information systems, announced that MedCentral Health System has expanded its system-wide use of the SIS solution to include anesthesia automation, perioperative analytics, patient tracking, and integrated tissue tracking as part of their single perioperative record.  MedCentral Health System, the largest medical provider between Cleveland, Ohio and Columbus, Ohio, was also the first hospital system in the United States to attest to Meaningful Use.

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The hospital recognized the need to expand its use of the SIS solution to keep up with increasing cost pressures as well as support the growing importance of quality initiatives. The expansion will include both of the facility's acute care hospitals as well as their surgery center. Reducing costs in the OR is a critical component of hospitals' strategies to manage changing reimbursement models such as Value-Based Purchasing (VBP).  Beginning this month, the VBP model lowers reimbursement payments to hospitals by 1% and begins to link reimbursement to the quality of care rather than the quantity of procedures performed. Seven of the twelve clinical quality measures in a hospital's VBP Total Performance Score are operating room Surgical Care Improvement Project (SCIP) measures.

"Hospitals are constantly challenged to reduce costs while providing safe and efficient care to our patients," said Mike Mistretta, Vice President and CIO at MedCentral Health System. "Completely automating the perioperative suite with SIS supports our goals to deliver safe, efficient quality care while alleviating some of those cost pressures such as VBP and other changing payment models."

The health system's implementation will include:

• An anesthesia information management system (AIMS) designed to streamline clinical workflows;
• Role-based analytics to assist in better understanding and managing surgical operations, including anesthesia-specific information;
• Patient tracking through all phases of care to improve communications and core metrics including on time case starts and room turnover times; and
• Integrated tissue management to provide standardized processes that accurately and efficiently manage tissue inventory, reducing waste, lowering costs, and supporting The Joint Commission and other compliance efforts.

The SIS Complete Periop solution, including these key applications, integrates with the hospital's Siemens Soarian® health information system, improving efficiency and communication across the care continuum.

"The SIS solution delivers a comprehensive perioperative patient record across our two hospitals and surgery center and integrates with our enterprise Soarian system," Mistretta added. "Adding functionality for anesthesia documentation and analytics, as well as enterprise interoperability, will help ensure that clinicians can access electronic patient information across the full continuum of care for our patients."

"As the first hospital to attest to Meaningful Use, MedCentral is a well-known innovator in healthcare information technology, dedicated to quality care," said Ed Daihl, SIS Chief Executive Officer. Working closely with Siemens as their exclusive partner for perioperative IT, we've developed world-class interoperability with Siemens Soarian that will help MedCentral maintain its status as a health IT pioneer and deliver high levels of care quality and financial performance demanded by the industry today."

About MedCentral

MedCentral Health System is a Mansfield, Ohio-based independent, not-for-profit organization. Created Jan. 1, 1996, it is comprised of two general, acute care hospitals: Mansfield and Shelby, with a combined total of 351 beds and 44 bassinets. With about 2,500 employees, it is the largest employer in Mansfield and the second largest in the six-county area it serves. Its active medical staff numbers over 200, representing a complete range of primary care and specialty practices. The system offers complete cardiac care, comprehensive neurological services, a walk-in medical center and industrial health and safety services. More information is available on the Internet at www.medcentral.org.

About SIS

Surgical Information Systems ("SIS") provides software solutions that are uniquely designed to add value at every point of the perioperative process. Developed specifically for the complex surgical environment, all SIS solutions – including anesthesia – are architected on a single database and integrate easily with other hospital systems. SIS offers the only surgical scheduling system and the only anesthesia information management system endorsed by the American Hospital Association (AHA), and analytics and rules-based charging products that have been granted Peer Reviewed status by the Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA). SIS is also the first AIMS provider to be designated as an AQI Preferred Vendor by the Anesthesia Quality Institute (AQI). SIS Anesthesia was rated #1 in the recently released anesthesia specialty report by KLAS.[1] For more information, visit our website, www.SISFirst.com.

SIS, the SIS logo, and Surgical Information Systems are trademarks of Surgical Information Systems, LLC. Other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

[1]"AIMS 2012: Cooperation is Key," August, 2012. © 2012 KLAS Enterprises, LLC. All rights reserved. www.KLASresearch.com

SOURCE Surgical Information Systems