Physician IT

Alberta to migrate patient data to three EMRs

EDMONTON - A consortium formed by healthcare vendors BridgeForward Software, Inc. and Beacon Partners, Inc., has been awarded a multi-year contract by Alberta Health and Wellness (AHW) – the government health program in Alberta, to migrate patient data from 10 legacy vendor electronic medical record (EMR) systems to three EMR systems certified for use in Alberta.

When physicians use the three certified systems, they qualify for government subsidies. The project consists of migrating legacy patient data for up to 1,600 physicians across the province of Alberta.

The BridgeForward-led consortium was selected by AHW for its experience with physician data migration projects and for BridgeForward’s unique software tools, which allow the creation of a standardized, repeatable approach for migrating data within the physician practice setting.

“As we look to standardize our EMR approach, it is vitally important that we migrate existing patient data with as little impact as possible to our physician community,” said Dave Ulis (pictured above), program director of the Alberta Physician Office System Program (POSP). “The combination of BridgeForward’s technology and Beacon Partners’ expertise provides us with the platform and the services for getting this project completed with this important goal in mind.”

A key aspect of Alberta’s healthcare vision, and that of Canada Health Infoway’s Pan-Canadian electronic health record (EHR) architecture, is the ability of EMRs to support the day-to-day delivery of healthcare in the community-based primary and specialist care sectors.

In 2001, Alberta founded POSP to drive the adoption of physician office EMR systems throughout the province. Last year AHW selected three EMR vendors to provide EMR solutions for the renewed Physician Office System Program. The BridgeForward-Beacon consortium will migrate data from the 10 legacy vendors currently used by physicians to these three selected systems.

POSP is a joint initiative of AHW, the Alberta Medical Association and Alberta Health Services.

“As experts in interoperability solutions we understand the need for a standardized approach to electronic health records,” said Kevin O’Brien, Senior Vice President of BridgeForward. “And key to the success of Alberta’s healthcare vision is that its physicians have access to legacy patient data.”

“Alberta has led all of Canada in EMR adoption by its physicians and this project not only builds upon that success but also supports that national electronic health record initiative by standardizing on a smaller number of EMR vendors,” said Ralph P. Fargnoli, Jr. president and CEO of Beacon Partners.

About BridgeForward Software
BridgeForward Software, Inc. is an international technology and services company focused on solving data integration and data migration challenges within the healthcare industry. BridgeForward solutions are deployed in more than 4,500 hospitals and physician clinics worldwide. BridgeForward – and its predecessor company MicroScript Corporation – has more than 15 years experience helping hospitals, physicians, payors and healthcare application suppliers reduce the time, cost, effort and patient safety challenges associated with data integration and data migration. BridgeForward has customers throughout North America, the UK, Europe and Asia. BridgeForward maintains offices in Boston, Mass. and London, England. For more information, please visit: www.bridgeforwardsoftware.com.

About Beacon Partners
Beacon Partners coaches organizations in the Healthcare Community on the development of strategies that maximize Enterprise Yield – the alignment of people, processes and technologies. To achieve top levels of performance, a healthcare provider must factor strategic direction, physician alignment, economic incentives and overall market impact. According to the company, Beacon Partners has proven that focusing on these critical success factors will strengthen an organization from its core outward and improve the patient experience. Beacon Partners, the only firm in the industry that provides a satisfaction guarantee, has offices in Boston, San Francisco, and Toronto. It is one of the fastest growing privately held firms in healthcare management consulting. Please visit http://www.beaconpartners.com and Beacon Partners’ special healthcare information portal, http://www.spotlightonhealthcare.com.