Secure Communication Leads to Lower Readmissions

Client Spotlight: Kennedy Health

Chief Medical Information Officer James McCabe, M.D., of Kennedy Health, had a common challenge facing many hospitals and healthcare systems today: Many of his physicians were texting patient information using personal devices. There was also a need to reduce inefficiencies so that the physicians could get patient information in real-time and act on it without delay.

They had a choice; continue to try to enforce an outdated texting policy or find a modern secure communication solution that embraced their evolving clinical communication practices.

Kennedy Health is a three-hospital, 607-bed integrated healthcare delivery system providing a full continuum of healthcare services in southwest New Jersey. This meant that the solution they chose needed to be secure, able to integrate with other applications, be scalable, and most importantly, be cost-effective.

Oh, and the caregivers needed to want to use it too.

While their initial hope was simply to get their physicians and practitioners on one platform texting securely, much more than that occurred. Utilizing TigerText’s open API, the Kennedy team was able to integrate TIgerText with their EHR to help mobilize care teams, the moment patients arrived in the waiting room.

This EHR integration had an immediate impact on their organization including a reduction in readmission rates, and within one month the results spoke for themselves.

To see the full story, watch the video below:

Tags: EHR integration