Physicians' Institute recognizes Harbin Clinic
Local medical group receives statewide Health Technology Award
ROME, Ga. - Harbin Clinic, 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.
Harbin Clinic received the statewide award for successfully developing and implementing its new electronic medical records system. The presentation was made Thursday at the Clinic's physicians' quarterly meeting in Rome.
The primary clinical objectives of the program were to create a single patient health record and make it available wherever treatment was being administered, said Dr. Ken Davis, President & CEO of Harbin Clinic.
"With 32 specialties and 50 ancillaries, a single patient could have many paper health records," Dr. Davis said. "It was unlikely that all of the information on a patient who had several doctors was available in any one folder. A main objective was to create a single electronic record, accessible by all physicians in their offices or remotely at their homes and the local hospitals."
Other objectives included increasing medical record accuracy and staff productivity, as well as freeing up clinical space by eliminating the need to store paper records on site.
Dr. Chris Sward, Harbin Clinic Board Member, receives award from Dr. Jim Morrow with the Physicians Institute for Excellence in Medicine. (Photo by Chris Lowry)
"Also, the Emergency Room physicians and selected staff at both Redmond Regional Medical Center and Floyd Medical Center have access to Harbin Clinic patient records to facilitate better quality of care at their hospitals," Dr. Davis said.
Harbin Clinic 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. Harbin Clinic 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."
Harbin Clinic is Georgia's largest privately owned, multi-specialty physician clinic and serves an 11-county referral base. The main campus is supported by more than 20 satellite offices located throughout Rome and in Calhoun, Cartersville, Cedartown and Adairsville.
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.