EAGLE RIVER
Oct. 9, 2013
Courtesy of the News-Review and The Three Lakes News
Page 19
Setting the bar in North Woods health care
Ministry uses bar code technology for medications
In an effort to use best practice and keep patients
safe, including after an emergency, Ministry Eagle
River Memorial Hospital and Howard Young Medical
Center implemented new technology to ensure the
right patient gets the right medication, in the right
dose and at the right time.
The technology is called Electronic Medication Administration Record/Bedside Medication Verification
(eMAR/BMV). It uses bar code technology to match the
patient’s armband bar code and the medication bar
code with the physician’s order.
“We are very excited to have this important patient
safety technology for our patients,” said Dawn Gapko,
Ministry Health Care director of Patient Care Services. “We know this investment is extremely important as it supports our Ministry values in keeping our
patients first.”
Whenever a medication is given, it is documented
on the MAR that is stored in the patient’s medical
record. Until now, this had been a manual paper process.
With the implementation of eMAR, all medication
administration information is stored as part of the patient’s electronic medical record. Converting to eMAR
enabled Ministry Health Care to implement one of the
most important medication safety features available
— BMV with bar code scanning.
Each patient receives an identification armband
with a bar code. The bar code corresponds to the patient’s current medical record, including medication
history, allergies and lab results. Bar codes are also on
the medication packages that identify the medication
name and strength.
Ministry Eagle River Memorial Hosptial and Howard Young
Medical Center have implemented bar code technology,
“Before a medication is administered, bar codes on
the patient armband and on the medication are
scanned, allowing the nurse or respiratory therapist to
verify the right patient is receiving the right medication, in the right dose at the right time,” added Gapko.
“The software also provides alerts to the nurse regarding pertinent laboratory values or special administration information.”
with a handheld unit (above) to ensure the right patient
gets the right medications.
—Contributed Photo
The software checks each medication against the
patient’s drug history and lab results. If conflicts or potential drug interactions are identified, warnings alert
the nurse to double check, verify and/or call the doctor
before administering the medication.
Ministry Eagle River Memorial Hospital and
Howard Young Medical Center implemented the program earlier this year.
Howard Young recertified as Level III Trauma Care Facility
The Wisconsin Department of Health Services has
recertified Howard Young Medical Center (HYMC)
as a Level III Trauma Care Facility.
The classification means the hospital in Woodruff
has emergency department physicians, nurses and
other health-care providers with specialized trauma
training available 24 hours a day.
“On behalf of the Department of Health Services,
I congratulate the staff of the Howard Young Medical
Center for achieving its classification as a Level III
Trauma Care Facility,” said Jeffrey Davis, M.D., chief
medical officer, Wisconsin Division of Public Health.
“This is truly impressive and we commend your
hospital staff for its ongoing commitment to providing quality care to trauma patients in your area,” he
said.
The Wisconsin Trauma Care System defines a
Level III Trauma Care Facility as a hospital which
provides assessment, resuscitation, stabilization and
emergency surgery, and arranges transfer to a level I
or II facility for definitive surgical and intensive care
as necessary.
“We are proud to have been recertified as a Level
III Trauma Center from the state of Wisconsin,” said
HYMC Emergency Department Manager Sheila
Meyer. “When an emergency arises, our community
knows they can depend on Howard Young Medical
Center to provide high-quality care.”
Meyer continually monitors the requirements to
ensure the hospital meets and exceeds the state of
Wisconsin’s measures.
“Through our organized trauma committee, we review our trauma cases to assure parameters are met
for excellent trauma care,” said Meyer. “The only way
we can maintain this certification is through the
commitment of the entire multidisciplinary team
that cares for our critical patients every day.”
The state classification of Howard Young Medical
Center as a Level III Trauma Care Facility is a threeyear certification.
Ministry Health Care is an integrated Catholic
health-care delivery system serving more than 1.1
million people across Wisconsin and eastern Minnesota. Ministry operations generate nearly $2.2 billion in annual operating revenue with 15 hospitals,
47 clinics and nearly 12,000 employees, including
650 physicians and advanced practice clinicians.
Ministry is ranked among the top 20% of health-care
systems in the ??[? ?KX???[?? ? ?]?[?X[ ?[?[ ]X?????[?H?[??[???\?^H?\??B??[??? ?\??X?N?
? YX\???[??SU RU?X??[\?Y\??Z[?\? ?HXY?H?]?\??Y[[?X[??][??[??? ?\??X?N? L? YX\???[??SUKNNB?[\?Y\??Z[?\? ?HXY?H?]?\??Y[[?X[??][???[?K? ?YHZ?\?\?[???SUU? X?[?\??\?Y?YY[????[??? ?H\?[ ??H?K????\?^K????\?\???\]Y???\??\?[??\?Y?Y? \?H[?RK ?]\? ?\??YK^?\??\?X]\?X[ ? ???[?[B?[??? ]?]\? ?\??YK ?X\???X\??\? ?X?[? ?[[??\?K ?ZX?H^ ?X?][???[H \\?[? \?\?[?[?? ??B?[??\?H[??\?Y?][???H\? ?Z[?Y[?Y ?[??YZ\??^HX[?Y?[Y[? P??S?[???H\?H??[?? ?X?????Z[?\? ?HX[ ?\?H[? H?\?H\\?Y[? ??Y??X??]??Y?K\?HZX?Y?[?X?\?Y?YYSU[?H?\????[?[??ZX?Y?[?SU RU?X? ?K??H[ ??\?H ?? [?Y\??? H???\?[X?[[??K???