Rockville, MD
For Immediate Release
Huntington Hospital announced today that it has partnered with DrFirst to implement RcopiaAC™ electronic medication reconciliation in its facility. This system provides clinicians with vital information about patients’ medication history prior to hospital admission and helps to ensure that the proper medicines are prescribed throughout the duration of hospitalization and beyond.
RcopiaAC provides clinicians a more complete picture of the patient’s past and present medication history, rather than clinicians having to rely on the patient to remember drug names, strengths, and how they are taking those drugs. RcopiaAC is a web based system that correlates information from local physicians and third party payers with the hospital’s patient census.
RcopiaAC offers care providers access to the largest and most comprehensive medication history databases on the market. The system does a broad-based patient search across multiple data sources including all Rcopia ambulatory e-prescribing physicians, RxHub, and proprietary payer data directly hosted by DrFirst or by its affiliated health plans. It then consolidates the data into one list and is fed into Huntington’s patient database. The system reduces administrative costs associated with manual procurement of an accurate patient medication profile, improves risk management and increases patient safety.
“Being able to quickly access accurate medication history upon admission protects both patients and hospital staff from adverse events that can result from inaccurate or incomplete information,” said Linda Fischer, CIO of Huntington Hospital. “When a patient arrives in critical condition and a family member is not available, nurses and clinicians can easily bridge the gap between what medications a family member or patient thinks they are taking with actual prescription records. In addition, RcopiaAC’s automatic generation of up-to-date lists of prescribed and dispensed medications will help improve physician compliance with clinical guidelines and best practices.” The process from installation to go-live was achieved in less than three weeks and is integrated with Huntington’s McKesson ADT system. The new system will allow the hospital to achieve an efficient and cost effective medication reconciliation process while improving patient safety and exceeding Joint Commission requirements, which hospitals must meet in order to maintain accreditation. The product can be used standalone or interfaced with a hospital’s existing or future systems for patient information. RcopiaAC offers several flexible solutions for hospitals, allowing for a phased approach to adoption.
About DrFirst
DrFirst is a national provider of physician connectivity services through its award-winning, Surescripts GoldRx Certified Rcopia electronic prescription management system. Founded in 2000, DrFirst creates innovative services targeted to physicians in both ambulatory and acute care environments. DrFirst solutions are widely integrated with practice management and electronic medical records software through its “Open Borders” program, and the company counts among its client base, not only physician practices, but major health plans, health systems, and EMR vendors. More information about DrFirst can be found at www.drfirst.com.
About Huntington Hospital
Huntington Hospital is a 408-bed community hospital that has been an integral part of the Huntington community and surrounding area since 1916. A member of the North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, Huntington provides a full range of inpatient, outpatient, and specialized healthcare services with an emphasis on cancer care, cardiology, maternity and neonatal care, and specialized surgical procedures including joint replacement and complex orthopedic surgery. Recent achievements include the receipt of Magnet status, professional nursing’s highest honor.