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Go-Live News
For Staff @VGH/GRH/SISC
Wednesday, September 18
Patient Andy Morris gets fitted for an airboot by Dr. Jesse Wolfe in the temporary ED overflow clinic. See story below.In today’s Go-Live News:
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Overflow clinic supports ED and patients during Go-Live
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Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
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Endoscopy team appreciates knowledge and support around them
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On the way out…stacks and piles and files full of paper!
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Keeping patients informed
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Spotlight Q&A: Meet Doug Jang
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Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
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Key Links
Overflow clinic supports ED and patients during Go-Live
From sutures to sprains and abdominal pain, a temporary overflow clinic is helping ease the load on the VGH Emergency Department (ED) during Go-Live by pulling lower acuity patients. Chau Nguyen, a registered nurse who normally works at the Downtown Victoria Urgent and Primary Care Centre, is working in the clinic and also pitched in at the overflow clinic during the Royal Jubilee Hospital Go-Live in June.
“Here at VGH, we are seeing mostly patients who would go to an urgent care clinic,” says Nguyen. “We average about 30 patients a day.”
From left, Dr. Talveen Gill, Chau Nguyen and Stephen YoungTamara Leary, a Langford resident, came in with a broken foot. “A triage nurse came to get me in the ED waiting room, after being there for less than 10 minutes. They whisked me right out. It was brilliant,” she said.
“It’s cutting their wait time,” says Stephen Young, an LPN ortho tech. “A lot of ortho-related cases presented at RJH when they rolled out CPOE, so they wanted an ortho tech for the VGH Go-Live.”
The clinic is staffed by several nurses and/or one or two physicians. One of those is family physician Dr. Talveen Gill.
“Helping out my colleagues in the hospital and seeing patients who are in emerg is really rewarding in knowing that we’re easing the burden on the system,” says Dr. Gill. “It’s a great impact on the community.”
The clinic opened Thursday, September 12 and is scheduled to be open through October 11. Clinic hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Click to read Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Endoscopy team appreciates knowledge and support around them
Dr. Ramesh Bhakta has become well acquainted with Vancouver Island over the past few months (he loves it here, by the way!). The California-based physician has been supporting CPOE activations in B.C. health authorities, including Island Health, and is impressed by the smooth transition taking place in the endoscopy unit at VGH since Go-Live began there on Monday.
“No one will have difficulty reading a doctor’s handwriting because everything is clearly documented, which also contributes to patient safety,” he said.
Dr. Ramesh Bhakta“It’s also easier for physicians to communicate with nurses. When a physician places an order, it is very clearly transmitted about what to do and what not to do. It creates so many efficiencies.”
From left, Jennifer Osborne and Grant HoffertGrant Hoffert, ambulatory care manager, and Jennifer Osborne, clinical nurse educator, are both grateful that endoscopy is one of three ambulatory care units that has fully gone live at VGH.
“This change is very much welcomed. Hopefully, we can support other clinics as they go live,” said Grant. “In addition to at-the-elbow support, I also appreciate how quickly issues have been escalated by site leadership.”
Jennifer also highlighted the value of learning from RJH staff who recently made the same transition in June.
“We’ve really benefited from their experiences,” she said. “Some of our staff were even able to practice at RJH and then act as mentors to those who were brand new to CPOE. There have been normal bumps as we all get used to new processes but there is so much support.”
On the way out…stacks and piles and files full of paper!
From left, Jackie McCallum, supervisor, HIM registration, and Bindy Bains, executive director, HIM, have some fun removing paper forms that are no longer needed.
Paper files, paper piles, paper charts…these are all dramatically reduced or eliminated entirely with adoption of CPOE at VGH this week.
The reduction of paper and transition to a more fully electronic health record for each patient has been a long time coming, and eagerly received by the Health Information Management (HIM) team.
“We’ve made a profound reduction in the amount of paper we’re using,” said Bindy Bains, HIM executive director. “Our team has been really excited. While there will always be some paper, it’s reduced to a tiny fraction of what was produced every day. Once we stabilize, we will be implementing a scanning solution to digitize the remainder of the paper patient records.”
To illustrate just how much the paper file has been reduced…
Keeping patients informed
Spotlight Q&A: Meet Doug Jang
Name: Doug Jang
Role: Project analyst with the IHealth Technology Alignment Team, based out of RJH.
Previous Activations: Gorge Road Health Centre, Priory Long-Term Care, Aberdeen Hospital, RJH, VGH, Cowichan District Hospital, West Coast General Hospital.
What is a benefit of IHealth/CPOE you would like to highlight? The workstations on wheels, the WOWs, give staff flexibility and portability.
Key piece of advice during Go-Live: Have an outlet. Laugh it up, make it fun, don’t let the stress take you down.
Do you have a passion or favourite pastime outside of work? I’m a big sports guy. I play floor hockey, I play badminton with one of my kids, and just got into pickleball.
Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
Find support when and where you need it during Go-Live. If you need help or have a question, reach out 24/7 to support staff on your unit, use the “Band-Aid” tool at the top of your screen to get help, or call IHealth Central Support at 1-855-755-7001 or 28555.
Key Links
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- Tuesday, September 17
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Go-Live News
For Staff @VGH/GRH/SISC
Tuesday, September 17
Dr. Hayley Bos demonstrates FetaLink with RN Alexandra Power, who is expecting a baby in a few weeks.See story below.
In today’s Go-Live News:
- New fetal monitoring technology demonstrates benefits in early days
- Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
- Paper orders…as ‘vintage’ as rotary phones and bell bottoms
- ‘Ripping off the Go-Live band-aid’ in the ICU
- EHR-connected vital signs monitors build up a true picture of the patient
- Spotlight Q&A
- Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
- Key Links
New fetal monitoring technology demonstrates benefits in early days
Just days into working with new fetal monitoring technology at Victoria General Hospital (VGH), the Labour and Delivery team is already seeing the benefits.
On Sunday night, Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist and VGH Medical Co-Director, Dr. Hayley Bos was in the on-call room showing a colleague the new FetaLink system, which now displays real-time fetal heart rate tracings in the labouring patient’s chart in the electronic health record (EHR).
“There was a baby who previously had a normal tracing and then started to have some big heart rate drops,” says Dr. Bos. “I walked down to the unit right away, and we were able to shave a couple of minutes off our time to delivery. This new technology allows us to respond much faster…in catastrophic events, minutes matter.”
VGH is the first Island Health site to implement full FetaLink, building upon the fall 2023 launch of the central monitoring board in LDR. These boards show fetal heart tracings at the nursing station and bedside in labouring patients’ rooms.
Prior to FetaLink, clinicians would sometimes video-call a colleague to show them the paper tracings or send a page, which could take up to two minutes. And to see LDR outpatients’ previous nonstress tests (NST), staff would need to contact Health Records, which may not be timely.
Quinn Wolf, clinical informaticist, says this system is a timesaver. “If someone can view the fetal monitoring from their office or a call room and immediately say 'we are going to the OR, please prep the patient’, it is so valuable…and it really benefits the patients…both mom and baby.”
Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Click to read Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Today’s topics:
- Quality review: Review of Order Sets (Providers)
- Communication Orders (Providers)
- Independent Double Check (IDC) of High Alert Medication (Clinicians)
- Documenting Zero Units of Subcutaneous Insulin and Independent Double Check (IDC) (Clinicians)
- Controlled Substance Medication Administration Process (Clinicians)
Paper orders…as ‘vintage’ as rotary phones and bell bottoms
VGH Chief of Staff and Medical Director Dr. Chloe Lemire-Elmore had this to say about the change from paper to electronic ordering, after only four days:
“You know, it’s quite something. Paper charts already seem so vintage to me…like from the same era as cassette players and rotary phones. Hard to believe that only just last week we were still using them!
And don’t get me wrong. I have all the time in the world, and deep respect for bell bottoms and big hair. Just when it comes to health records and patient care, technology and safety trump style.”
Ripping off the Go-Live band-aid’ in the ICU
“We were kind of waiting for the ‘band-aid to be ripped off’ to go live. It feels pretty good,” said Sarah Yager, manager of the Adult Intensive Care Unit (ICU).
After preparing for months and shadowing ICU colleagues at RJH, the VGH ICU staff were ready to make the change to CPOE. By day three, some of the team had already noticed benefits like improved communication between departments.
“Communications for help with transport, for medical imaging and getting medications up to pharmacy…the improved communication between departments is a big benefit for us,” said Sarah.
A few members of the ICU team celebrate Go-Live Day 1 with a faux champagne toast.Another benefit: for each patient, nurses must make multiple measurements every hour or more often – the new system pulls information from the machines, like vitals and CRT numbers (continuous renal replacement therapy), into the patient chart, saving the nurse putting pen to paper.
Staff are also getting used to the introduction of bedside bar-code scanning to verify medications before they are administered to patients. The new process ensures patients are properly identified and get the correct medication by eliminating many potential manual errors.
Sharon Anderson, a registered nurse in the ICU, said, “The scanning is a different workflow, but it’s very convenient having scanners inside and outside the room.”
Bedside bar-code scanning completes the circle of what’s known as closed loop medication management. Studies show that closed loop management can reduce the number of observed adverse drug events by as much as 77%.
From left, Sharon Anderson, Sarah Yager, Becky FontaineBecky Fontaine, an ICU clinical nurse educator, said, “We scan our patient, we scan our medication. It’s forcing positive patient identification when this may have been a little relaxed in the past.”
EHR-connected vital signs monitors build up a true picture of the patient
Hannah McCabe, RN in the ICUTo support the full functioning of the electronic health record (EHR), 184 vital signs monitors (VSMs) have been deployed at VGH, GRH and South Island Surgical Centre.
Biomedical devices add patient vital sign data directly into the EHR in real-time. Using the Philips Easy-Vue VS30 or the Welch Allan VSM, heart rate, heart rhythms, oxygen saturation and respiratory rate become part of the patient record.
Registered Nurse Hannah McCabe works in the ICU, where VSMs see constant use. Colourful monitors display patient vital signs, and data also transfers automatically into the patient record.
“I quite like the system,” said Hannah. “It's efficient being able to transfer it over and still be able to make adjustments based on what you’re seeing. It can build up a true picture of the patient.”
In the nurses’ station, another monitor displays a summary of all patients’ vital signs.
“I like how it’s easy to pull our patients’ vital signs from the monitors into our online charting,” says Janelle Inoke, a registered nurse. “And I do like that you can change the settings on the monitors for what you need to be able to see and the size of things. They’re rather intuitive.”
Spotlight Q&A
Name: Josh Coulson
Role: Clinical operations manager, VGH Pediatric Surgical Daycare and ambulatory clinics
Previous Activations: RJH
What is a benefit of IHealth/CPOE you would like to highlight? Aside from the extra 5,000 steps a day he is getting during Go-Live, having a complete patient record that’s readily available for everyone.
Key piece of advice during Go-Live for CPOE: Gillian (Kozinka) gave feedback to look at some of these extra steps that weren’t there before as an opportunity and not additional work. If we’re entering a delirium order set, for instance, look at the opportunity that provides us to appropriately care and plan for that patient, which we didn’t necessarily have as readily available before.
Do you have a passion or favourite pastime outside of work? I am basically the professional driver to sports for my seven- and nine-year-old girls.
Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
Find support when and where you need it during Go-Live. If you need help or have a question, reach out 24/7 to support staff on your unit, use the “Band-Aid” tool at the top of your screen to get help, or call IHealth Central Support at 1-855-755-7001 or 28555.
Key Links
- Monday, September 16
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Go-Live News
For Staff @VGH/GRH/SISC
Monday, September 16
Congratulations to the South Island Surgical Centre (SISC) team who went live today!
“Today was our first day using CPOE and it’s gone well,” said Nikolina (Nina) Budimcic, interim surgical services access coordinator for VGH and SISC. “There were a few hiccups but nothing we’ve been unable to address. A lot of people ‘learn by doing’, so it’s nice that it is finally here. It’s going to create many efficiencies and standardization across the board.”
From left, Alicia MacFayden (NUA), Taylor Webb (NUA) and Nina Budimcic (interim surgical services access coordinator, VGH and SISC)
In today’s Go-Live News:
- Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
- Labour and Delivery patients and staff well supported during CPOE
- A village of support makes all the difference
- Pharmacy team touts time savings
- Patients at GRH offer words of support
- Spotlight Q&A
- Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
- Key Links
Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Click to read Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Today’s topics:
- Orders Hygiene (Providers and Clinicians)
- Discharge Medication Reconciliation (Providers)
- Subcutaneous Insulin (Clinicians)
- Diet to NPO (Clinicians)
Labour and Delivery patients and staff well supported during CPOE
“The perinatal team is supported by people who are familiar with the patient care, know our workflows and understand how quickly things can change for our patients,” said Quinn Wolf, a clinical informaticist with the IHealth team supporting the Labour and Delivery (LDR) department.
In fact, LDR is experiencing two other new activations in addition to CPOE – FetaLink, which provides anywhere-access to fetal monitoring, and peri-operative documentation.
Quinn Wolf, Clinical Informaticist“It’s so important to meet people where they are at, being readily available to answer questions and offering tips and tricks or any other assistance to help improve user experience,” said Quinn.
Some of the most frequent questions that she receives are related to changes in workflows. For example, an order for bloodwork was placed through the new electronic ordering system and staff wondered “What happens now? Where does the order go? Do I have to phone the lab?”
“We placed an order at 8 a.m. and it was received by 8:10 a.m., meaning we completely eliminated the previous steps of filling out a paper form, faxing or sending it in a tube, and then calling the lab to ensure it was received,” Quinn said.
The new processes are also enhancing patient safety.
“As part of CPOE, order sets have been updated with the most current perinatal practice recommendations,” she said. “Providers have a suite of up-to-date, easy-to-use order sets that are a gold standard for maternity care. It’s very exciting.”
A village of support makes all the difference
Aaron Del La Espriella, clinical nurse educator (left), and Dr. Shamon AhmedThey say it takes a village. For the VGH/GRH/SISC Go-Live this week, our village has grown in wonderful ways.
Take Aaron Del La Espriella, for example. As a full-time Clinical Nurse Educator for Nanaimo Regional General Hospital’s OR, he has built his experience with CPOE since that site launched eight years ago.
“I’ve been teaching it ever since, multiple times per year, with new employees, new students,” Del La Espriella said. “A few months ago, I went to RJH and helped them launch it there.”
Dr. Shamon Ahmed is a cardiology resident from Vancouver who is also sharing his experience working in the Cerner electronic health record, having supported Go-Lives at St. Paul’s and Vancouver General Hospitals, as well as RJH in June.
“I think for me, having done medicine and then residency in Vancouver, it hits close to home in terms of having an EHR that is going to help improve patient care and also make things more efficient,” Dr. Ahmed said. “And I saw how that happened in Vancouver and then coming in and experiencing that at RJH and now VGH, you see how dramatically patient care changes.”
“Everybody’s been really supportive and collegial and that’s helped create an environment that really fosters growth and productivity,” he added.
This knowledge sharing, collaboration and joint support has become a hallmark of IHealth activations. “We really appreciate the people who have come in to support nursing, allied health, providers, everyone,” said VGH Executive Director Gillian Kozinka. “It’s regional and it’s also provincial, so we’ve really felt the ‘team sport’ approach. Feeling prepared and supported in this change makes all the difference.”
Pharmacy team touts time savings
The VGH Pharmacy team on Go-Live morningThe benefits of CPOE were evident in the VGH pharmacy within hours of Go-Live on Saturday.
Director of Pharmacy David Forbes says before Go-Live, they would receive scanned copies of physician’s hand-written orders, which a pharmacy technician would have to interpret and enter a medication order, then a pharmacist would have to do a clinical evaluation before verifying the order. “Now, with CPOE, a doctor enters it directly into the system, so we no longer need the pharmacy technician to be reviewing a handwritten scanned image, and the pharmacist just reviews what the physician has entered.”
Forbes says the system is more streamlined, and less prone to errors. He says pharmacists are also saving time because they have improved access to charts, and don’t need to spend time hunting for them while they are on the units.
Patients at GRH offer words of support
Geraldine Twomey (left), and Kathleen Oldfield“I certainly did see the notice on the food tray and read it twice,” before the activation on Saturday. “At first, I didn't think we were going to get it, but then I also saw a big sticker on the floor in the hallway by the dining room. That’s when I thought, ‘Well, they must be doing it!’ Actually, I think they're doing a good job, though I’m sure they’re very busy.”
- Geraldine Twomey, patient at GRH
“I hope it works, but that’s a hard road to go—learning something new as you’re putting it to work. What I want the nurses to know is that they should take time, not rush. It’s when you rush that you make mistakes."
- Kathleen Oldfield, patient at GRH
Spotlight Q&A
Name: Dr. Regina Renner, OBGyn, NRGH
Role: Provider support
Area supporting: Labour and Delivery
Previous Activations: NRGH and also EPIC 16 years ago in the U.S. during residency there
What is a benefit of IHealth/CPOE you would like to highlight? It allows to have order sets built in a standardized way and standardizes care, which improves patient safety. I really like that we have well-functioning order sets that we can remotely enter, like from home or from another floor. I don’t need to go hunting for individual charts to place orders.
Key piece of advice during Go-Live for CPOE: Spend the time to customize and learn the system now. This will save you a lot of time in the long run and make it more enjoyable.
What is a passion or favourite pastime outside of work? I like to be in nature, and I like to sing.
Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
Find support when and where you need it during Go-Live. If you need help or have a question, reach out 24/7 to support staff on your unit, use the “Band-Aid” tool at the top of your screen to get help, or call IHealth Central Support at 1-855-755-7001 or 28555.
Key Links
- Sunday, September 15
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Go-Live News
For Staff @VGH/GRH/SISC
Sunday, September 15
Allied Health team members Bryn Matheson (left) and Erin Olsen are finding efficiencies and lots of support during the first days of Go-Live. Read story below.
In today’s Go-Live News:
- A message from Gillian Kozinka and Dr. Chloe Lemire-Elmore
- Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
- Allied Health team finds efficiencies and support in first days
- Dr. Karen McIntyre goes above and beyond helping hospitalists prepare for CPOE
- Team embraces change together at GRH
- Spotlight Q&A
- Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
- Key Links
A message from Gillian Kozinka and Dr. Chloe Lemire-Elmore
Congratulations and a huge thank you to everyone. Go-Live weekend was a success, this is a really good start.
Across our sites, people are feeling ready and supported due to the huge amount of preparation that has been done.
Monday is almost like a re-do of Day One, with many new services and different challenges coming our way. Having this weekend to “dip our feet into the paddling pool”, so to speak, is really helpful. It is important that we remain grounded, kind and compassionate with each other as we will be faced with an additional lift and learning curve tomorrow.
Please remember in these early days of transition that the workflow impacts are felt more in some areas than in others – in the emergency department, for example. We are deeply appreciative of colleagues and community physicians who are enabling our temporary emergency overflow clinic to relieve some of the pressure on the ED.
Having that close connection with our quality and practice partners is a key ingredient to make sure we are identifying opportunities to improve our practice and serve our patients in a safer way – this is where the great quality improvement opportunities are ahead.
We are seeing the dividends of our hard work and diligent preparation. For any of the bumps we are encountering, there is an army of support we can call upon where it is needed.
Keep up the great work!
Thank you,
Gillian Kozinka and Dr. Chloe Lemire-Elmore
Read the Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Click to read Clinical Adoption Key Messages
Topics:
- Verbal Orders (Providers and Clinicians)
- .HOLD Orders (Providers and Clinicians)
- Barcode Medication Administration (Clinicians)
Allied Health team finds efficiencies and support in first days
It’s day one for Physiotherapist Erin Olsen and she’s already discovering how much more efficient the electronic system is. She says what previously could sometimes take her an hour, now just takes minutes.
“On a weekend, physios cover multiple floors so I would normally have to physically go to each floor for each patient to find the paper referral,” says Erin. “Now, instead, I can be at my workspace and screen all the referrals.”
Rissan Manalo, a rehab assistant, is happy to make deciphering handwritten orders a thing of the past. “I think I like it,” Rissan says. “You know how doctors’ notes are sometimes…they can be a scribble. This makes it easier to read the orders.”
Bryn Matheson is one of four Practice Supports for South Island making the new system easier for physiotherapists, rehab assistants and occupational therapists.
Rehab Assistant Rissan Manalo“Staff have felt really confident knowing we’re here for the weekend, and extra support is coming from Jubilee throughout the week,” says Matheson. “Leadership has been really supportive, saying this is a huge rollout and that priorities may look different for a while. All of these things ease people’s anxieties.”
Bryn and her colleagues supported staff with new tools, such as cheat sheets containing key information and a self-evaluation checklist for the new workflow skills. The group also uses a Microsoft Teams chat for posing and answering clinical questions.
She says, “All of the hard work we have put in to learn the new system will hopefully result in spending more time doing the things we love, like treating patients.”
Dr. Karen McIntyre goes above and beyond helping hospitalists prepare for CPOE
Dr. Karen McIntyre is one of approximately 100 hospitalists in the South Island now using computerized provider order entry (CPOE) in their daily practice. On Day 2 of Go-Live at VGH, we find her on 5S preparing discharge orders and medications for one of the 242 patients in care of the VGH hospitalists group.
Dr. Karen McIntyreAccording to Dr. Andre de Wit, IHealth Physician Lead for Provider Education and Experience, what makes Dr. McIntyre particularly special is the commitment she has made to help her hospitalist colleagues get ready for the significant change CPOE brings to their daily work.
“I personally think the success of the hospitalists can be attributed to her,” says Dr. de Wit, adding that Dr. McIntyre has organized and led informal lunch-and-learn sessions for hospitalists for months.
“It’s not just the willingness to do it, it’s the way she does it, as well,” he says. “She will prepare pages and pages of test patients and scenarios, and she’ll hand them out to the docs around the table. It’s just really well organized.”
Dr. McIntyre started as a locum eight years ago at Nanaimo Regional General Hospital when IHealth was introduced at the site. Since then, she has been committed to acting on the learnings from that experience and supporting other providers.
“I think the key is to do regular practice sessions and be well staffed at the time of the rollout…the reason why our group did well is because the whole group was engaged in the process,” she says, adding that since the NRGH Go-Live the improvements to the PLYIH domain have improved the learning and practice experience.
Team embraces change together at GRH
As Gorge Road Health Centre (GRH) enters its second day using the new CPOE system, staff are showcasing adaptability and teamwork.
"Day two is going well. The nurses have really embraced the change,” said Ryan Gibson, nurse informaticist. "We just had a nice ad hoc in-service on how to create a wound care order and set up a dynamic group in IVU for wounds.”
Robyne Maxwell, executive director of quality and safety, highlights the collaborative spirit of the team. "They were all suggesting improvements to the process. It's great to see them learning and problem-solving together."
Darren Goodyear, a patient at GRH, welcomed the new system. "I've seen how nurses are now using the computer. This is great stuff in my opinion.” Goodyear added that he hopes the system can help prevent medication mix-ups.
While the new system introduces changes to their workflow, the core of patient care remains unchanged. "We still know how to take care of people. We knew how to do our job yesterday, and we know how to do our job today. There are just some changes in how we document things,” said Cynthia Elliott, executive director for professional practice and learning.
From L-R: Simran Chugh (CNL/RN), Janice Rombano (NUA), Olivia Sabnal Wilkes (CNE), Robyne Maxwell (ED, Quality and Safety), Cynthia Elliott (ED, Professional Practice and Learning), Arlene San Juan (LPN)Spotlight Q&A
Name: Christine Neufeld
Role: Clinical informatics specialist (and retired physiotherapist)
Area supporting: Allied Health
Previous Activations: Nanaimo, Mount Tolmie and Oak Bay Lodge, clinical documentation at VGH, Gorge Road, RJH, Cowichan District Hospital, West Coast General Hospital
What is a benefit of IHealth/CPOE you would like to highlight? We owe this huge debt to Nanaimo clinicians for what they did in getting this whole thing started. The tool we have now is so much more refined because of the work they did.
Key advice for Go-Live: Be kind to yourself. You’re in a job you’re in because you’re a smart clinician with a capacity for learning and you can learn this. We’re actually looking forward to what you’re going to bring to make this better.
Where can we find you outside of work? As much time frolicking with the grandchildren as I can.
Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
Find support when and where you need it during Go-Live. If you need help or have a question, reach out 24/7 to support staff on your unit, use the “Band-Aid” tool at the top of your screen to get help, or call IHealth Central Support at 1-855-755-7001 or 28555.
Key Links
- Saturday, September 14
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Go-Live News
For Staff @VGH/GRH/SISC
Saturday, September 14
From left, Kylie Conway, CNL, Alison Simard, Manager and Leah Eamer, CNE from S4AB look cool and prepared in their Hawaiian shirts on the morning of Go-Live.
In today’s Go-Live News:
- “Cool, calm and prepared” vibe at VGH and GRH Go-Live
- LPN highlights medication error prevention with new CPOE system at GRH
- Go-Live Perspectives: Day 1
- Spotlight Q&A
- Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
- Key Links
“Cool, calm and prepared” vibe as VGH and GRH go live with CPOE
Just before 6 a.m., with Gorge Road Health Centre on her mobile phone in one hand, VGH Executive Director Gillian Kozinka called the central switchboard using her other hand and asked them to play the overhead message.
“Attention please, we are now live with Computerized Provider Order Entry, we are live,” was broadcast throughout both sites. “I had a bit of a lump in my throat,” Kozinka said. “I was quite emotional when I was talking to switchboard.”
That wave of emotion was the culmination of months of work and anticipation leading up to this day. And for Kozinka, it was also because she felt so well supported. “It’s because my team are all here…the managers, the directors, the CNEs, the CNLs…the Monday-to-Friday folks are all here helping their people and making sure their staff feel supported.”
Go-Live happened on schedule at 6 a.m. after a smooth cutover process, where patient information was transferred from paper into the electronic health record.
“Congratulations to everyone at VGH and Gorge Road on today’s Go-Live. It’s been an amazing day,” said Kozinka. “With something this big, we always expect to encounter a few lumps and bumps along the way, but everyone is showing up with kindness and professionalism, and you can feel the support all around…I am so impressed and proud of the whole team.”
Dr. Chloe Lemire-Elmore, VGH Chief of Staff and Medical Director, says her patients have already benefitted, and she has saved time as a doctor.
“Patients received the needed tests and medications earlier than when we had paper charts,” said Lemire-Elmore. “Previously I would have to go up to the ward, find the chart, write the order, and it would then be processed by the unit clerk, who would fax it to the lab or pharmacy. Each step took time. Now in the morning when I see bloodwork or vital signs of concern, I can act on them immediately and get a workup or treatment underway. No time is lost.”
“I’m pleasantly surprised, though I know we are not through it, yet,” Lemire-Elmore added. “Let’s say it has been a good start.”
VP Clinical Services Marko Peljhan said you can feel the positive vibe across the VGH site, which he described as cool, calm, and prepared. “I’ve gone to several units today…issues are coming up and we are addressing them, because we have the right team in place. There is a sense of camaraderie, and having the extra staff and shoulder-to-shoulder support is really good.”
LPN highlights medication error prevention with new CPOE system at GRH
Paula Nunes, a licensed practical nurse (LPN), shared her initial experiences with the newly activated Computerized Provider Order Entry (CPOE)
system at Gorge Road Health Centre (GRH).“The main benefit is preventing medication errors,” Nunes explained. She highlighted how the system’s alerts ensure accurate prescriptions are followed. “It prompts us with helpful messages like, ‘This medication is overdue’ or warns us with pop-ups saying, ‘Incorrect dose’ or ‘This medication has been discontinued.’”
The transition, however, has not been without challenges, especially working with a community of older residents. “With the population we have here at GRH, it can sometimes startle them especially in the morning. It’s also a lot of running back and forth to scan patients then return to the computer,” said Nunes. “However, that’s part of the adaptation process, finding the rhythm of what to do next.”
The implementation has been supported by the Cerner adoption coaches, which Nunes found reassuring. “Today has been great so far for the first day. The support from my clinical nurse educator and the IHealth team has been excellent,” she said.
Go-Live Perspectives: Day 1
“So far people seem to be adapting to the new way of ordering. I think everyone’s keen and excited…so far, so good. I think the real test will be Monday when the regular weekday crew are all here. We’ve been fortunate that it’s been a manageable patient census with Go-Live, so that’s helped. Everyone’s been prepped through training, and there is really no amount of training that can really mimic what real life will be like.”
Dr. Gaby Yang, Pediatrics
“We had great support here. If they weren’t here it would be definitely harder, because when we did the modules it was a while ago. I think it’ll get easier. The more you do it, the quicker it’ll be. There are lots of things to remember initially.”
Teresa Evangelou, RN, CNL, Labour and Delivery
“The advanced prep really helped. We’ve been so excited. People feel really informed. It’s going smoothly. It’s really a cool system.”
Heather Hawkes, NUA, OR
“The teams are all really engaged. Everyone is really positive. There’s a high energy throughout the whole hospital. Our prep is paying off. Staff have come to work today with great attitudes. I think it’s going amazing.”
David White, Director, Medicine, ICU & Emergency
“So far so good. I feel very supported and looking forward for all of this to be the norm.”
Amy Rohr, RN, 4A
“Until you actually put it into practice, you don't quite really know what you’re doing. So, it is fun to be able to go through things that I’ve sat in meetings about and actually see how they’re working in real life. We are feeling very well supported, at least from a provider standpoint. I’ve been seeing lots of support people everywhere, ready to go and ready to give help, which is great.”
Dr. Kellie Whitehill, OBGyn, Labour and Delivery
Spotlight Q&A
Name: Faye Henderson
Role: Cerner Adoption Coach
From: Ohio, USA
Based in: George Road Health Centre
Previous activations: Royal Jubilee Hospital
Looking forward: I’m hoping for a successful activation and for end users to be more comfortable in the new process.
Tip: Always use the references provided to you and let us know if you need help.
Location on the island you’re keen to visit: I’ve only been to Vancouver and Victoria so far, but I’m eager to expand my Vancouver Island geography!
Support at the elbow, on desktop & remote
Find support when and where you need it during Go-Live. If you need help or have a question, reach out 24/7 to support staff on your unit, use the “Band-Aid” tool at the top of your screen to get help, or call IHealth Central Support at 1-855-755-7001 or 28555.
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