The Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) Analytics Europe announced on 7 May 2012 that the Marina Salud Hospital in Dénia, province of Alicante (east coast of Spain) has achieved ‘Stage 7’ of the Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) for paperless, digital workflows.

It is the first hospital in Spain and the second hospital in Europe to achieve the highest rating on HIMSS Analytics’ EMRAM scale, which evaluates the digitisation level of a hospital. Stage 7 is awarded for achieving a paperless medical record environment. The Hospital de Dénia has been officially recognised for its achievements at the pan-European eHealth Week 2012 conference in Copenhagen, on 7-9 May 2012.

The Marina Salud Hospital has implemented electronic systems for every part of the healthcare process, making it a truly paperless hospital. All the nurses and physicians document their clinical notes online, thus the latest results and impressions are available for all care givers to see instantly. The medical imaging department is completely digital, making all images available online across the hospital network. Physicians enter orders electronically, supported by an intelligent clinical decision support system. A sophisticated clinical and business intelligence programme enables staff to analyse care quality and efficiency, making it a 'data driven' organisation, which is a key factor for a Stage 7 hospital.

“Spain is the country with most Stage 6 EMRAM hospitals, so it was just a question of time before we identified the first Spanish Stage 7 winner. Hospital de Dénia is a rare example of a 100 % paperless hospital and is a role model for what the hospital of the future should look like. This is a milestone for healthcare in Spain and we look forward to hosting our upcoming CIO Summit in Mallorca  in November 2012, where representatives from the hospital will be talking about how they reached Stage 7”, said Uwe Buddrus, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), HIMSS Analytics Europe.

Spain has the highest number of Stage 6 winners and the highest number of candidate hospitals in the pipeline to be scored in Europe. To date, 300 Spanish hospitals have participated in the HIMSS Analytics Europe survey.

“This eagerness to participate in the survey is a clear reflection of a country that wants to be a leader and transform healthcare through information technology," said Uwe Buddrus.

Background information

The Electronic Medical Record Adoption Model (EMRAM) identifies the levels of electronic medical record capabilities of hospitals ranging from limited ancillary department systems through a fully paperless environment. Hospitals can be assessed for their EMRAM rating by taking part in a free survey conducted by HIMSS Analytics Europe. This collects detailed healthcare IT data and tracks the implementation and adoption of EMR applications through each stage. Final evaluation of Stage 7 status is conducted via an on-site visit. Hospitals who want to evaluate their EMRAM score should visit the HIMSS Analytics Europe website on which a dedicated webpage can be found.

Further information:

• Original News Article - HIMSS Analytics
• Related ePractice news article - DE/EU: German hospital first in Europe to get top rating for paperless, digital workflows