11.07 - Physicians' Institute recognizes Immanuel's Women's Center

Local medical practice receives statewide Health Technology Award

CHATSWORTH, Ga. − Immanuel's Women's Center, LLC, is one of four recipients of the inaugural Health Technology Awards for 2007, presented by the Physicians' Institute for Excellence in Medicine, recognizing Georgia physicians who have implemented technology solutions in their practice.

Immanuel's Women's Center, based in Chatsworth, received the statewide award for successfully developing and implementing an electronic medical records system (EMR). Joy A. Nwadike, M.D., physician at Immanuel's Women's Center, said there are a number of benefits associated with implementing EMR.

"Using an electronic method saves time, money and space and also provides an avenue to help train new staff," Dr. Nwadike said. "It has also made it possible to manage and understand the challenges of a practice without paying a lot for an experienced practice administrator. One of the lessons we learned was that we did not have to rely on one person to perform any function because it was easy to train our entire staff."

Other issues addressed by EMR, according to Dr. Nwadike, are improved coding skills, resulting in faster reimbursement for services; financial controls to reduce errors in billing and fiscal management; instant access to patients' records from anywhere in the country; and enhanced office space by reducing the need for storing paper records.

Immanuel's Women's Center is among four 2007 Health Technology recipients who were chosen from applications submitted by primary care and specialty care practices across the state. The entries were judged by Georgia physicians who have been awarded the prestigious Davies Award from the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society.

"The purpose of the awards program is to showcase replicable, innovative technology solutions that demonstrate a positive impact on clinical practice," said Walker L. Ray, M.D., president of the Physicians' Institute. "Among these are electronic medical records, registries, document management, telehealth and e-prescribing. McDuffie Medical Associates is one of four physician-owned private practices that have each distinguished themselves by having implemented a successful technology strategy that benefits the clinical process, practice management and, most important, patient care."

Immanuel's Women's Center is an obstetrics/gynecology specialty practice serving patients in Murray County and the surrounding area. Dr. Nwadike operates out of Murray Medical Center in Chatsworth and Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton and performs infant deliveries at Hamilton Medical Center.

The Physicians' Institute created the new health technology awards in collaboration with GMCF, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization for Georgia. The awards are supported by a grant from the Physicians' Foundation for Health Systems Excellence and GMCF.

As a not-for-profit (501(c)(3) subsidiary of the Medical Association of Georgia, the Physicians' Institute focuses on activities to support physicians, including educational programs and tools, in addition to sponsoring applied projects to improve the effectiveness of practices and processes in the physician office. The mission of the Physicians' Institute is to improve patient safety and achieve clinical improvements for physicians and their patients.

The Physicians' Institute was one of the few organizations in the country to receive a significant grant award from the Physicians' Foundation for Excellence in Medicine. During 2006 and 2007, the Physicians' Institute's grant has supported the MAG E-Technology Academy, a multifaceted program designed to increase the knowledge base of physicians regarding the use of technology in their offices.

The Physicians' Institute continues to collaborate on a national level with state medical associations, health foundations, pharmaceutical companies and other health organizations to support office-based physicians in their efforts to improve patient outcomes. For more information, visit http://www.physiciansinstitute.org