St Mary’s Health and Clearwater Valley Health, two healthcare facilities in Idaho, have begun using MEDITECH's Expanse electronic health record (EHR) system across their network of hospitals and associated clinics.
The EHR platform will allow the two critical-access hospitals to connect their communities through a shared, Cloud-based platform.
Both hospitals are set to use the MEDITECH as a Service (MaaS) subscription model for this implementation.
MaaS supports a cost-effective implementation that aims to benefit rural health organisations with limited IT infrastructure, as well as upfront funds for the maintenance of EHR systems such as Expanse.
By using MEDITECH Expanse, the two hospitals expect to centralise patient engagement and allow patients to manage their health online.
The unified patient portal will enable access to virtual visits, messaging with care teams and submission of health metrics from home.
The hospitals will also use Expanse Patient Connect to maintain secure communication with patients by using
This feature supports the use of text messaging for appointment reminders and health maintenance alerts, with the aim of fostering a more proactive approach to patient care.
Clearwater Valley Health and St Mary’s Health chief medical officer Dr Kelly McGrath said: “Our new Expanse EHR will provide us with a strong foundation of evidence-based care while leveraging latest advancements in clinical decision support and AI.
“But just as importantly, it gives us the flexibility to tailor our best practices to unique needs of our communities.
“Not all hosted solutions provide critical access hospitals with this same level of autonomy, which is essential for us and communities we serve.”
Previously operating on different EHR systems, the transition to MEDITECH Expanse will enable St Mary’s and Clearwater Valley to maintain a singular patient record across various care settings.
The two hospitals serve patients in Clearwater, Idaho and Lewis counties, collectively recording more than 45,000 outpatient visits each year.
