When patients walk into the hospital for treatment, their medical records need to be available in a flash to the doctor. “The more information we have immediately at our fingertips, the better off our patients are,” says Nancy Barr, Director of Information Systems at CMH. “Doctors need access to previous lab tests and a record of prior care, while our medical records department requires other information from the patient’s chart.”

Caring for patients traditionally relies more on the skill of doctors and nurses than the latest bells and whistles of technology. As Genesys Health System found out when they introduced an electronic medical records system, an injection of high tech can nicely complement high touch for improved healthcare.

For Gerber Memorial Healthy Services, BlueWare’s Wellness Connection was just what the doctor ordered. It saved money and increased efficiency. What’s more, by giving physicians remote access to medical information helped the hospital secure a $185,000 federal grant for a diabetes education program.

From notoriously bad handwriting on a prescription, to detailed information on medical charts, to the dollars and ents of patient invoices, it’s hard to imagine healthcare without scads of paper. Indeed, at MidMichigan MedicalCenter-Midland, the flagship hospital of MidMichigan Health, patient care used to be one big paper chase. Like other healthcare facilities, MidMichigan relied on paper documents to keep its business functions beating. Physicians affiliated with the hospital had to rely on a paper trail that could never quite keep up with their patients. Too much reliance on paper was causing MidMichigan numerous inefficiencies.

Read a MidMichigan case study

Carson Health Network is a fast growing hospital, and while growth is good, it can also create challenges like having to chase down doctors to provide them with patient reports – reports that contain time-sensitive information, such as test and x-ray results. “Many of the physicians travel constantly between towns. Sometimes it would take days from the time doctors would dictate a report, to the time the reports would catch up to them,” explains Rich Terry, Chief Information Officer at CCH.

On the front line of a hectic healthcare setting, every moment counts. With speedy diagnosis and treatment, a minute saved means a life can be saved. Hospitals are also about business, and saving time means saving money. In the case of Mercer County Joint Township Community Hospital, it even means attracting top talent and keeping the customer happy.

Personal care is the cornerstone of Hills & Dales General Hospital of Cass City, Michigan, a 47-bed acute care facility with a health care team of 275, with 46 physicians. This hospital provides health and rehabilitation through ambulatory care clinics, a 24-hour emergency room, community health clinic, assisted living facility and other services. However, they struggled with the challenge of a faulty Patient I.D. process. BlueWare provided a solution.