16 California Hospitals, Health Systems Among ‘Most Wired’ in U.S.

Sixteen California hospitals and health systems made Hospitals & Health Networks' annual "Most Wired" list, which recognizes hospitals for successful health information technology planning and implementation, Healthcare IT News reports (Miliard/McCann, Healthcare IT News, 7/9).

Details of Survey

The list was compiled through a survey conducted in partnership between:

• The American Hospital Association;
• AT&T;
• CareTech Solutions;
• The College of Healthcare Information Management Executives;
• Hospitals & Health Networks; and
• McKesson.

This year, the survey was completed by 680 hospitals and health systems accounting for more than 1,900 hospitals, or more than 30% of all U.S. hospitals.

The survey evaluates hospitals based on four focus areas:

• Business and administrative management;
• Clinical integration, for ambulatory, physician, patient and community;
• Clinical quality and safety -- for both inpatient and outpatient hospitals; and
• Infrastructure.

Survey Findings

Overall, 375 hospitals achieved the "Most Wired" designation for effectively employing technologies, such as alerts and medication matching at patients' bedsides and computerized provider order entry.

Specifically, the survey found:

• 71% of hospitals on the "Most Wired" list manage care transitions, compared with 57% of survey respondents overall;
• 69% of hospitals on the "Most Wired" list use tools for retrospective analysis of clinical and administrative data, compared with 55% of all respondents;
• 43% of hospitals on the "Most Wired" list integrate clinical and claims data, compared with about 34% of all respondents; and
• 36% of hospitals on the "Most Wired" list compile data from patient encounters to create a community health record, compared with 27% of all respondents.

In addition, the survey found that of hospitals on the "Most Wired" list:

• 82% provide patients with access to an online portal to check test results;
• 58% offer a mobile health application that provides access to a patient portal;
• 53% offer patients access to an online portal for chronic disease self-management tools; and
• 40% provide secure messaging technology (Weinstock, Hospitals & Health Networks, 7/9).

California Hospitals on the List

The California hospitals that made the 2014 Most Wired list are:

• Adventist Health in Roseville;
• Cedars-Sinai Health System in Los Angeles;
• Children's Hospital Los Angeles;
• Dignity Health in San Francisco;
• Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage;
• Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia;
• Kaiser Permanente in Oakland;
• Loma Linda University Medical Center in Murrieta;
• PIH Health in Whittier;
• Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego;
• Sharp HealthCare in San Diego;
• Stanford Hospital and Clinics;
• UCI Medical Center in Orange;
• UC-Davis Health System in Sacramento;
• UC-San Diego Health System; and
• VA Palo Alto Health Care System.

No California hospitals were designated as a "Most Wired Small and Rural" facility, and no California hospitals made Hospitals & Health Networks' "Most Improved" list.

UC-San Diego Health System was the only California facility named to the "Most Wired Advanced" list (Healthcare IT News, 7/9).