University Of Pittsburgh Medical Center Named One Of 100 Most Wired Hospitals In The U.S. For 10th Consecutive Year

Main Category: IT / Internet / E-mail
Also Included In: Public Health
Article Date: 16 Jul 2008 - 1:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

For the 10th consecutive year, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) has been named one of the 100 Most Wired hospitals and health systems in the United States, according to the results of the 2008 survey by Hospitals & Health Networks magazine, the journal of the American Hospital Association. UPMC is one of only six organizations to appear on the list since its inception.

The 100 Most Wired hospitals show better outcomes in patient satisfaction, risk-adjusted mortality rates and other key quality measures through the use of information technology, according to the magazine's new analysis.

"This remarkable achievement underscores UPMC's commitment to investing in information technology for the benefit of our patients," said Dan Drawbaugh, Chief Information Officer at UPMC. "It's no surprise to us that these investments are linked to better results on critical quality and care measures. Indeed, UPMC has long been a leader in deploying information technology to improve clinical outcomes."

Starting in 2005, for instance, UPMC began an innovative partnership with IBM to re-engineer its hardware, software and technology processes to make data sharing and storage simpler, faster and more economical. This approach envisions technology infrastructure as a utility, such as water or electricity, available on demand. Using such technologies as virtualization and autonomic computing, UPMC already has realized significant cost savings while providing more flexibility and improved availability of computing resources for clinicians across its 20 hospitals and 400 outpatient sites and doctors' offices. The project has become a model for health care organizations trying to move to a virtual environment.

"Health IT has shown incredible promise in helping us improve the quality and safety of the care hospitals deliver every day," said Rich Umbdenstock, president and chief executive officer of the American Hospital Association. "The results of the Most Wired survey confirm that today's patient also understands the benefits of IT in improving care and improving the overall hospital experience."

Hospitals & Health Networks' 2008 survey covered 1,327 hospitals, or about 22 percent of all U.S. hospitals. The analysis shows that better outcomes occur among high-tech hospitals, but it does not establish a direct causal relationship between technology and outcomes. The satisfaction analysis was conducted jointly with Press Ganey Associates and the quality analysis with Thomson Healthcare. Full results are available in the July issue of Hospitals & Health Networks magazine at http://www.hhnmag.com.

About UPMC

UPMC is an integrated global health enterprise headquartered in Pittsburgh and one of the leading nonprofit health systems in the United States. As western Pennsylvania's largest employer, with 48,000 employees and nearly $7 billion in revenue, UPMC is transforming the economy of the region into one based on medicine, research and technology. By integrating 20 hospitals, 400 doctors' offices and outpatient sites, long-term care facilities and a major insurance plan, UPMC has advanced the quality and efficiency of health care and developed internationally renowned programs in transplantation, cancer, neurosurgery, psychiatry, orthopaedics and sports medicine, among others. UPMC is commercializing its medical and technological expertise by nurturing new companies, developing strategic business relationships with some of the world's leading multinational corporations and expanding into international markets, including Italy, Ireland, the United Kingdom and Qatar.

UPMC