Letter from the Chief Medical Officer
Dear Colleagues:
Partners HealthCare Systems is making tremendous progress in transforming its individual member hospitals into a truly integrated health care system known for quality. Thanks, in large part, go to the leadership, vision and drive of PHS President and CEO Jim Mongan and PHS Signature Initiatives. Through this system-wide approach, PHS is building on successful and efficient policies and procedures in place in various PHS entities, improving on them and rolling them throughout the entire organization.
The Signature Initiatives have one goal, and it’s the same goal we all share. PHS aims to make the delivery of care as safe, error-free and cost-efficient as possible. This goal is to solve the “value equation,” as we strive to deliver the best care with improved quality and efficiency. At Brigham and Women’s Hospital, this underscores what we have been trying to do for many years, and as one member of PHS, we are solving the “value equation” for even more care providers and patients.
Safety and efficiency, however, begin with clinicians. We are grateful for and proud of the commitment BWH physicians have demonstrated in the pursuit of quality, safety and efficiency. We have made significant strides in cutting medication errors with eMAR, recording and sharing patient information through the Longitudinal Medical Record and gaining efficiencies and cutting costs in imaging through Percipio.
Everyday, physicians write more and more prescriptions electronically, and our goal ultimately is to eliminate hand-written prescriptions wherever possible. We’re making significant strides in the safety of daily care delivery with staff-driven improvements being made every day, thanks to online safety reports. Ordering images through our decision-supported Percipio has never been easier or more efficient.
Through the continued implementation of the Signature Initiatives and your continued efforts, BWH and PHS are among the nation’s leaders in advancing the quality and efficiency of care. We are improving care in and around Boston through our hard work and dedication, and, I am proud to say, we are paving the way for improved care across the country.
Sincerely,
Andy Whittemore, MD
Chief Medical Officer