The FCV medical complex was recognized as the Colombian hospital with maximum digital maturity in the country.

• The patients treated at the FCV have a fully electronic medical record, connected in real-time with information from the different services involved in their care. 

• The FCV's electronic medical record is powered by algorithms that help identify risks and even recommend laboratory packages or specific activities to support healthcare staff related to decision-making.

Bucaramanga, July 2022. HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) endorsed the FCV medical complex as the most advanced digital hospital in Colombia for systematizing all data, reducing to zero the use of paper, and developing innovations that allow to take the best decisions for patients based on the electronic medical record.

 

As part of the Himss Executive Summit, an event held this week in Bogota. The international organization granted the EMRAM 7 certification to the FCV. It represents the highest level of maturity in information systems, the exigency level is so strict that in Latin America, there are only nine hospitals with this seal (seven in Brazil, one in Argentina, and now one in Colombia), and worldwide there are only 200.

 

"At the FCV, we are committed to excellence in clinical management. It is crucial to be a digital and smart hospital. We have been working for three years on this accreditation. It is an honor to be the first in the country with this distinction", says Victor Raul Castillo Mantilla, FCV`s president.

During this digital transformation process. several developments were achieved, such as the medical records connection with laboratory, radiology, pathology, and robotic pharmacy information systems. "In this way, we facilitate interoperability, i.e. the exchange of information between the different participants, and ensure that all the services involved in patient care are coordinated. In addition, we remove the use of paper, which complicates the processes at the time of transcription and does not make them efficient", explains María Carolina Aguirre Navas, FCV’s Medical Informatics Director.

We also adopted a system that allows full digital traceability for delicate processes such as medication delivery, blood products, breast milk, or laboratory work. "We call it a closed circuit. All the staff has a code that needs to be scanned through a special application before any administration. They also scan the patient's wristband and the code of the medication or element required. This way, processes are much more secure, so adverse events are reduced." says Gladys Castro Pinto, nurse manager of the Adult and Intermediate ICU of the FCV. Other innovations include clinical decision support tools that analyze different variables about the patient's condition, such as vital signs or laboratory results and suggest treatment options. "By using information technology, we help healthcare professionals make the best decisions for the patient. Physicians and their teams analyze the entire situation and determine the next steps to follow", says Aracely Jaimes Chanaga, Director of Information Systems at FCV. 

To achieve this maximum digitalization level that would benefit patients, the FCV's entire technological infrastructure was intervened and strengthened. "We achieved greater cost-effective use, and the work done with the engineering and systems teams was key to this," reveals Vladimir Salamanca, director of Technological Infrastructure at FCV.

What is HIMSS?

The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) is an international non-profit organization that measures the maturity of hospitals' digital transformation this is done through a system of levels ranging from zero (entirely paper-based medical records) to seven (completely electronic medical records). 

In 2021, the FCV reached level 6 due to the significant advances implemented in SAHI, the electronic health record platform created within the organization. Currently, the system is supported with algorithms that help identify risks and even recommend laboratory packages or activities, depending on the patient's condition, to support healthcare staff decision-making.

The HIMSS certification, more than just becoming a benchmark, has tangible benefits in terms of the digital maturity of organizations, this is how institutions that have adopted this model, progress has been evidenced in areas such as safety in care, with a 20% decrease in the presentation of institutional adverse events and an 18% drop in the length of stay.  Moreover, in these hospitals, patient satisfaction has increased by 118% and the use of low paper by 67%, consolidating a position of environmental responsibility.