CHARLESTON, SC NEWS - LIVE 5 WCSC Breaking News, Weather, SportsHealthcare providers to improve patient care online

Healthcare providers to improve patient care online

By Nicole Johnson  bio | email | Twitter

SUMMERVILLE, SC (WCSC) - Healthcare professionals are improving patient care with the click of a mouse. Trident Medical System is the first in the state to use a life-saving computer program OACIS, in its emergency rooms. The healthcare provider logs in, gets connected, and then they know all about your health.

"Usually people don't know their whole medical history, and that's what's important to obtain some sort of old record. We try to do that on everyone who comes in with a significant medical complaint," said Summerville Medical Center Emergency Room doctor Tim Beatty.

The program provided by the Carolina eHealth Alliance, or CeHA, basically stores a patient's health record, and doctors and nurses at 11 other emergency rooms in the network have access. Trident Health System, MUSC, Roper and East Cooper hospital ERs are expected to be linked into the into the CeHA's system by fall.

Before the online exchange of this important patient information medical professionals would have to wait on phone calls, emails, or faxes on patient records, and it could delay treatment for hours.

"Some patients have very complex medical problems, and just obtaining a discharge summary, you're able to make medical decisions based on that information from the discharge summary. If you're able to pull that up with a couple of clicks versus a fax machine, it really makes a difference," said Dr. Beatty.

The records include, but aren't limited to lab data, radiology data, dedications, past treatments, and discharge notes. It's personal information that's protected by HIPAA laws, but hospitals involved say the security is a top concern.

"All the data that's being shared between the hospitals is going to be on a private, 100 percent encrypted tunnel. There's no way that anyone will be able to hack in to get to that data," said Trident Health System technology manager Damien Noble.

"Anything that speeds up patient care is worth it. To help move an ER effectively and help take care of patients," said Dr. Beatty.

The Duke Endowment Fund paid for up front costs of the program. We've been asking our Twitter and Facebook friends what they think about the new online record exchange.

 "That's scary. I would be a little worried about the possibility of someone hacking the system," said Sheanna Cauthan of Charleston.

"I think the switch to this is inevitable and will ultimately make our doctors better able to treat us," said Kelsey Gilmore of Mount Pleasant.

"Physical files get misplaced, thrown out, stolen all the time. To access electronic files illegally, you have to have a very specific and talented set of skills to bypass online security measures," said Gill Bell of Charleston.

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