PROSSER, Wash. -- Doctors in Richland will soon be able toquickly see medical records of patients from Prosser, cutting downon redundant tests, phone calls and delays.
So promised officials from PMH Medical Center and Kadlec RegionalMedical Center at a public announcement Monday of a partnershipbetween the two hospitals.
The arrangement should have happened sooner, said Julie Petersen,CEO of PMH, formerly known as Prosser Memorial Hospital.
'It's what the patient thinks is already happening,' Petersensaid. 'They're puzzled when we're still faxing things back andforth.'
The partnership is a nonbinding agreement that could pave the wayfor more alliances down the road, including sending Kadlecspecialists to practice a day or two a week in Prosser clinics.
It's not a merger or even a precursor to one, officials said.Prosser is a publicly funded hospital, while Kadlec is a privatenonprofit in Richland where many Prosser patients are referred.
The partnership will allow Prosser to purchase from Kadlec theservices of Epic, a Wisconsin firm that makes electronic medicalrecords software.
Federal mandates require most medical providers, such ashospitals, to make 'meaningful use' of digital records by 2014, apractice most Yakima Valley providers have already embraced.
However, those records still must be transferred among doctors,hospitals and clinics by fax, email or a specially connectednetwork.
The arrangement between Kadlec and Prosser would store one recordfor every patient on a central database for every physician in bothplaces to view and update at any time.
Officials had no timetable in mind and have not negotiated a costto the Prosser hospital. However, it would replace the hospital'scurrent system, which costs about $7,200 per month.
Epic only serves medium-size and large providers, includingSwedish Health Services and Providence Health and Services, whichlast week announced plans to join forces to form the largest healthcare system in the state.
Kadlec is one of the smaller hospitals using Epic, said RandWortman, Kadlec president and CEO.
The arrangement will make it easier for Prosser to transferpatients to Kadlec, where doctors will have even more access to thatpatient's information, Wortman said. Even in the age of technology,that doesn't always happen, especially in the emergency room late atnight.
'We'll frequently repeat studies because we don't know what's inthe records here,' Wortman said.
Petersen and Wortman also said the agreement does not forcepatients to chose Kadlec. Many of Prosser's patients are Grandviewresidents who prefer specialists in the Yakima area, Petersen said.
